Moore, Jech, Howard and Thompson

When the bill filing deadline ended at Oklahoma’s State Capitol Thursday, there were more than 3,000 pieces of legislation for lawmakers to consider.Some of the legislation is important and needed. Some was filed to please political donors even though they don’t have a chance of passing.

In tornado-ravaged Selma, prayers and gratitude

SELMA, Ala. (AP) — Outside his tornado-damaged Crosspoint Christian Church, Rev. David Nichols told his congregation there was much for which to be grateful despite the destruction around them.The tornado that ravaged Selma hit the church's daycare.

Holy water and orthodox memories of a vase of flowers

After the Christmas season and before Lent, Orthodox priests have — for centuries — rushed to visit church-members' homes to bless them with prayers and splashes of holy water flung about with a foot-long brush or handfuls of basil.

Biden and the sanctuaries’ dilemma

This column has written previously about the fundamental difference between Republicans and Democrats when it comes to the crisis on the U.S.-Mexico border. When confronted with more than 2 million illegal border-crossers overwhelming U.S.

Older adults at risk of vitamin D deficiency

ASK THE DOCTORSDear Doctors: I have read that older adults may not get enough vitamin D in winter. My father-in-law is 73 years old. He's from Florida, but he's spending a year with us here in Maine. He can't be outdoors all the time like he is at home.How important is vitamin D?

Reader wants repay kindness of expensive gift

DEAR HARRIETTE: I was overwhelmed when I received an expensive Christmas gift from my friend. I never expected such a pricey present, and it left me feeling very grateful. I felt that I had to do something in return to show my appreciation, but what could match the gesture they made?

DO JUST ONE THING

We’ve all done it: You drop someone off in front of a store so they can run and grab something quickly while you sit in the idling car.

Friend’s angry lecture resonating after dream

DEAR HARRIETTE: In my dreams the other night, I remembered a troubling conversation I had with someone who used to be a dear friend years ago. This conversation marked the end of that friendship for a lot of reasons.She was so cold and mean when we spoke.

The folly of the criminal mind

People who focus upon the motives of alleged killers like Bryan Kohberger, the Ph.D. candidate arrested for slaughtering four college students in Moscow, Idaho, are missing the point. Defective specimens like him don’t have motives that any sane person would recognize.

Exposing ‘truths’ about American myths

The half-dozen versions of the final report of the committee examining the Capitol insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, aren’t the only books that are making waves in the first weeks of the new year.