Man 'Steals' from Store Called 'Finders Keepers'

Ruben Pavon was driving down the road in Derry, New Hampshire when a store caught his eye. It was a large building with lots of stuff out front just sitting ...

Chicago Man Discovers His Real Name

The headline in the Chicago Tribune was poignant: "Living a Life Unknown." The subhead said, "Dozens of John, Jane Does turn up yearly ...

'Unwanted' Indian Girls Receive a New Name

In October, 2011, the Associated Press ran a deeply moving story about a name-changing ceremony for girls in Mumbai, India. At birth the 285 girls had ...

Man Tries to Change His Name to "Boomer the Dog"

The following illustration shows how important names are to our identity, character, self-worth, and calling. It also shows why biblical names for God ...

The Power of Renaming Things

In 1977, fish merchant Lee Lantz traveled to Chile and "discovered" the toothfish, a species the locals deemed too oily to eat. Thirty years ...

Boy's Hoax Teaches Valuable Lesson

Ever hear about the dihydrogen monoxide hoax? It's been around for a while, but it got a lot of media attention in 1997 when a 14-year-old student ...

Man Returns Stolen Boomerang

While visiting Mount Isa, Australia, in 1983, an American man stole a boomerang from a local art museum. Twenty-five years later, he returned it with ...

The Powerful Act of Naming

In the article "Leading by Naming," Mark Labberton speaks of the power names carry:

Every day our naming of the people around us gives life and ...

Website Guards Against "Dissing the Dead"

The laws of etiquette proclaim that we should not speak ill of the dead—especially the recently deceased. There is one place, however, where this ...

Sons Don't Live Up to Their Names

In their fascinating book, Freakonomics, economists Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner point out that one of the first acts of parental power comes in the ...