Christmas was hijacked by laundry detergent — but there was still reason to hope

It was a box of laundry detergent than undid Christmas of 1988 for the Rogers family. Dad thought it would be a great idea for us to trek into the woods behind our house and cut down our very own Christmas tree. As a ten-year-old boy, it seemed like an awfully adventurous thing to do, but looking back, I suspect Dad was just trying to save money. By the time we dragged the scraggly pine tree home, there was no doubt we’d gotten what we paid for: a sentimental experience that ended when Dad propped the pitiful tree against the…

The vaccines that are keeping the coronavirus out of my marriage

March 26, 2020March 26, 2020 Categories: MarriageTags: family · marriage · prayer

It’s two weeks into the national coronavirus meltdown and I’ve got good news: My wife and I still like each other. That’s remarkable, considering the fact that we’re semi-quarantined and living in a world that’s collapsing around us — not to mention being trapped in a house with three kids who think we’re a couple of vending machines. While we’re just as tired of wringing our over-washed hands as anyone else, we’re still managing to stay happily married. I think it has to do with a few things that have kept us in good spirits so far …

If your in-laws make you uncomfortable, do what my wife did

January 5, 2020January 6, 2020 Categories: MarriageTags: conflict · family · marriage · parenthood

My wife didn’t know what to expect the first time she met my dad, and I wasn’t sure how to prepare her for it. As I explained to Raquel, “My dad is like — I don’t know — this truck driver preacher who talks to everyone he meets. He’s kind of eccentric.”

I asked my girlfriend’s dad if I could marry her — his response stunned me

December 15, 2019 Categories: MarriageTags: family · love · marriage

I had only been dating my girlfriend for three months when I decided to ask for her father’s permission to marry her. It didn’t go well — not at first. On a sunny Saturday morning, I sat across from her dad trying to make small talk as my omelet grew cold, but I couldn’t focus. My heart was racing and I just wanted to get it over with, so I went for it.

What happened when my daughter saw me kiss my wife

December 7, 2019January 8, 2020 Categories: Marriage · UncategorizedTags: divorce · family · love · marriage

One day, my wife and I were listening to a playlist of Disney songs with our two little girls when the sentimental love song “I See The Light” from Tangled came on. I walked over to my wife who was in the kitchen, took her in my arms and started dancing with her slowly. I could tell it caught her off-guard and embarrassed her a little — it came out of nowhere. Thank goodness she stayed in my arms and danced with me anyway.

Dear Ramón: a letter to my imaginary son-in-law

September 7, 2019September 6, 2019 Categories: ParenthoodTags: family · kids · love · marriage · parenthood

One morning when my youngest daughter was 3, she got out of bed, met me at the stairs, and with quiet sincerity said, “Daddy, I have a husband.” “Oh really? What’s his name?” “Ramón,” she said, pronouncing the name “Wah-mone.”

What my daughter said after she smelled my morning breath

August 23, 2019 Categories: MarriageTags: criticism · family · kids · marriage · parenthood

When I was in my early 20s, I took an etiquette class back home in Mississippi. Although I remember very few of the rules, one has always stuck with me: As a general rule, you should let people embarrass themselves.

God bless the rude DMV clerk who taught me this wonderful lesson

February 26, 2019February 26, 2019 Categories: ParenthoodTags: family · kids · parenthood · sanctification

I arrived at the DMV late on a Friday afternoon, hoping to get my driver’s license without suffering through a long wait. I never imagined the monumentally awful experience that was about to unfold.

Dear President Bush, thank you for your tears

December 8, 2018 Categories: ParenthoodTags: death · dying · family · parenthood

To President George W. Bush: Mr. President, I’m writing to tell you that I watched the eulogy you gave your dad this week, and it hit me hard. I thought you were going to get through it without giving into emotion, but right at the end, grief snuck up on you and did a sucker punch to your gut. The tears came.

Thanksgiving as a kid — a day without shame

November 21, 2018December 1, 2018 Categories: Loving Your NeighborTags: family · gratitude · kids

For a period of time in third grade, I cringed when it came time to pay for my lunch — there wasn’t enough money for us to pay for it. I felt humiliated by getting free lunch. I had seen kids walk up to the lunch lady without handing her any change and I had looked down on them. Now I was one of those kids.

Joshua Rogers

Finding God in the Ordinary

Tag: family