Football Player Can't Forget the Ball He Dropped

Noble Doss dropped the ball. One ball. One pass. One mistake. In 1941, he let one fall. And it's haunted him ever since. "I cost us a national ...

A Christmas Memory from Author Walter Wangerin Jr.

In The Manger Is Empty, Walter Wangerin Jr. shares personal memories from past Christmases. In a chapter entitled "A Quiet Chamber," he recalls ...

Marketers Target High Expectations of Americans

Bill Bryson writes of a lecture on marketing he once heard contrasting how products were sold in Britain and the United States.

The gist of the program ...

"The Treasure of the Sierra Madre": Prospector Misses What Counts

The Treasure of the Sierra Madre is the story of three down-on-their-luck prospectors and their search for gold in Mexico.

At one point in their search, ...

Success Gave Executive a Hollow Feeling

A N. Y. Times article on people who are sick of too many hours at work tells the story of Diane Knorr, a former dot-com executive:

"The first time ...

"Gladiator": A Parent's Painful Legacy

The film Gladiator tells the story of Maximus (Russell Crowe), general of the Roman army in 180 A.D. Following victory in a decisive battle, the dying ...

"A Christmas Story": Disappointment

In A Christmas Story, young Ralphie wants a Red Ryder BB gun, but his parents' only response is, "You'll shoot your eye out!" All the ...

Martin Luther King, Jr., on Hope

"We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope."

—Martin Luther King, Jr.,

Coach Jerry Manuel's Response to Rejection

Jerry Manuel is the fourth winningest manager the Chicago White Sox has ever had. Only once since 1998 has his team finished lower than second place in ...

Beethoven Writes Great Music Though Deaf

Widely regarded as the greatest composer ever, Beethoven began losing his hearing at age 31 and was completely deaf 16 years later.

As he became more and ...