Author: Jeff Hampton

For Wilshire Baptist Church

Sitting in lawn chairs under the trees on the first day of March, Mom and I talked about a lot of different things. We also watched as others around us tended to the details of life, death and forever.

We met at Restland Cemetery to put flowers on my sister Martha’s grave the day before her birthday on March 2. Mom texted me that morning and asked me to meet her “for 15 minutes or less.” Her promise of brevity was not lost on me, because we’re not a family that likes to hang out at the cemetery. But, it was a warm, pleasant afternoon, and I decided we might do something different this time. I’d seen how folks bring chairs and sit around the graves of loved ones at Garland Memorial Cemetery near our house, and I decided that might be a nice thing to do.

Continue reading “This Side of Forever”

For Wilshire Baptist Church

I was at my desk doing some cleanup when a YouTube collection of music popped up on my computer screen titled “Folk Country Songs.” The description listed artists I’ve always enjoyed: John Denver, Don McLean, Cat Stevens, Jim Croce, America, Simon and Garfunkel, James Taylor, etc. It seemed like a good mix for a quiet morning, so I clicked it and went back to sorting through papers, receipts and debris from 2024.

As I listened, it didn’t take long to realize something wasn’t right. The instrumental arrangements were spot on, but the vocals? I advanced the video several times to hear short segments of other songs and confirmed what I was hearing: These were meticulously created covers by almost-sound-alike vocalists.

Continue reading “Authenticity”

For Wilshire Baptist Church

It was one of the most uncomfortable moments of my life, perhaps even a top 10. 

I was on my back in the dentist chair, beginning to relax after having a molar pulled. The tooth hadn’t caused any pain or problem, but it was wobbly with little jawbone support, and a root canal wouldn’t save it. 

Everything went fine with the extraction and a bone graft, and after the dentist stitched me up, he asked, “Do you want to keep the tooth?” He asked because it had a large gold crown, and even I had thought about that before I went in. I paid for that gold years ago and figured I could get cash for it somewhere. I nodded my head, and he said he would sterilize it. And then he said this: “You might want to be careful where you take it. A lot of jewelers are Jewish, and they won’t take gold from a tooth because it brings back memories of the Holocaust.”

Continue reading “Painful Reminder”