Allen R. Hunt's Blog, page 33

Resolving to Change

Anita, our daughters, and I sat down on Saturday for a meal together with a focus on 2011. And we implemented the simple wisdom of a sage friend regarding resolutions.



1) We wrote them down, and

2) We then shared them aloud with each other



His research indicates that these two simple acts dramatically increase the likelihood you will achieve real change in your life with a new year's resolution. Writing your resolutions (no more than 5) down on an index card allows you to carry that goal with you each day as a reminder and an incentive. Doing that two years ago helped motivate me to lose twenty pounds and get back in my fine chiseled manly shape :)



Second, sharing your resolutions aloud with a friend or family member increases both your accountability and the support you will receive as you make those changes.



Our family now has some excellent personal, spiritual, and professional goals for 2011. May your   >>>>>   Read Entire Post

America's 13 Exceptions

Before Christmas, I shared on the show my reasons that America truly is exceptional. After all, exceptional means "unique," an exception from the norm.



At least 13 ways comprise the reasons for America's unique capabilities and role in the world.



1) The people who came (and still come) here are risk-takers by nature. They tend to be creators rather than spectators. Our people are truly different. And exceptional.



2) Those risk-takers find here the opportunity to move upwards on the economic and social ladder.



3) Because we have no class system where you are born into a segment of society and unable to deviate from that.



4) As a result of 1, 2, and 3 innovation springs from America. Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Apple, and the list goes on and on. American ingenuity is exceptional.



5) Thus, America is remarkable at wealth creation.



6) Which allows us to lift up the poor. Our   >>>>>   Read Entire Post

Special Gift to Murphy Harpst

Many thanks to the kind folks at Incomm and Vanilla Visa for their assistance in serving children in the greatest need in Georgia.



Here is the press release



ATLANTA, Dec. 24, 2010 - Vanilla Visa, the nation's most popular

network-branded gift card, announced today a donation valued at $5,000

of Vanilla Visa(r) Gift Cards to Murphy-Harpst Non Profit Organization

for Children, to be used as needed.



Nationally syndicated radio talk show host, Allen Hunt of the Allen Hunt

Show on WSB Newstalk Radio and Murphy-Harpst representative, accepted

the donation on behalf of the non-profit today, on Christmas Eve.



The Murphy-Harpst Non Profit Organization for Children is a nonprofit

residential treatment center that provides an emotional, spiritual and

physical safe haven. The program rated among the top 10 percent of its

kind nationally and provides round-the-clock therapeutic care that

enables children to heal and recover so   >>>>>   Read Entire Post

11 in '11

As I mentioned on the show last week, here are the 11 things coming in 2011 that I look most forward to. Ranging from the sublime to the ridiculous.





January - Anderson Cooper becomes just "Anderson." AKA Prince

And the Iphone comes to Verizon. Competition for AT&T thrills my heart



February - Gregg Allman's new album is released



March - Economy begins to improve as the fear and anxiety soften a bit. Light truck sales are improving. Small business is beginning to hire. The housing market's collapse has been so severe that it cannot worsen anywhere near the same rate that we have already experienced. And American entrepreneurs are alive and well. Signs of life will begin to appear in Spring.



April- Duke repeats as national champion in NCAA hoops



May - The Presidential campaign begins in earnest. Don't you just love it when 14 or 16 candidates begin to go at it as they seek   >>>>>   Read Entire Post

Msgnr. Paul Reynolds

My friend, Monsignor Paul Reynolds, died this week. The funeral Mass was today.



I cannot capture in mere words what this man meant to me, and his transition from this life to the next touches me deeply.



Paul was an Irish priest who had devoted himself for many decades in Alabama and Georgia to serving God's Church. When I became Catholic, Paul was among the first to reach out to me to welcome me and share his joy that I had discovered the same treasures in the Church that he had. He asked me just to call him "Paul," and we regularly enjoyed lunch and/or good conversation together.



Paul was gentle. And holy. He simply exuded a warm holiness that I have encountered in very few people. Of course, he never would have acknowledged that. Anita and I often joked that we both had crushes on this Irish priest. His love for God and for people was just so evident.



This Christmas, I give thanks for the life of Monsignor Paul Reynolds   >>>>>   Read Entire Post

Christmas Apology

Our family enjoyed a huge celebration this past weekend when our older daughter graduated from college. She and I made a trip to New York for a long weekend to honor her achievement (and the tuition savings I now look forward to!).



As a part of that weekend, we attended the Radio City Music Hall Christmas Spectacular. Frankly, I had no real expectations for what we would see and was delighted at the extravaganza of dancers, 3-D imagery, and shock and awe special effects. Most pleasantly surprising was that the final 15 minutes were devoted to a dramatic reading and portrayal of the Christmas story itself from the Gospel of Luke. Unabridged and unabashed. It was wonderful.



In an era where NPR commentators like Nina Totenberg apologize for using the phrase "Christmas party" on air, it was heartening to know that some folks fully celebrate Christmas as CHRIST-mas. After all, that is the holiday's name. Even at Radio City Music   >>>>>   Read Entire Post

What Goes Around Comes Around at Christmas

Lee Rhyant discovered at age 10 that life can be hard. One of eight children, Lee and his three elder siblings learned there would be no presents under the Christmas tree. His mother broke the news that the family could only afford to purchase gifts for the youngest four children. What hurt most was to see the pain on his parents' faces from having to share that news. The sting still lingers in Lee's soul, "No child should ever feel that pain."



Lee wanted a Tonka truck that year. When he got his first job at 22, he went out and bought himself a set of Tonkas. Now that he is an executive with Lockheed in Atlanta, Lee helps ensure that boys and girls do not experience the pain and shame that he did. He coordinates Lockheed's partnership with Toys R Us and with the Marines Toys for Tots to help deliver 137,000 pounds of toys and joys to kids and their families in the still-recovering poorest sections of New   >>>>>   Read Entire Post

Emails of the Week: MIlitary Pay Raise

The conversation last week regarding whether the military should receive a pay raise in the current economic conditions set off quite a flurry of emails.



Here are three of my favorites:



Allen,



I agree with you, and think my fellow soldiers would agree too. I dont think we should get a raise at all. The country is hurting and our job is basically to defend the country.





Allen,



You didn't get any good arguments, so I wanted to try to tell you HOW WRONG you are - read what I'm about to say and see if you REALLY have good answers.



1. First or all, NO, you DON'T appreciate the military. You are one of the mindless morons that has always had freedom HANDED to you! You have NO clue what it is like to serve in a war zone. Or 2 or 3 tours away from your family in Viet Nam, Korea, Iraq or other places. And if we don't maintain a suitable active duty force, YOU would be endangering all of our futures!

   >>>>>   Read Entire Post

Christmas Giving Surprise

Very interesting article in the Wall Street Journal today about charitable giving and generosity in America. Charitable giving fell 11% in America in the last year. But giving to religious groups barely budged at all, falling less than 0.1%.



Below is an excerpt. Not surprising that more devout people give more generously than less devout believers and non-believers. The interesting thing is what appears to motivate them.



...On average, those in the most religious fifth donate $3,000 to charity annually. Those in the most secular fifth give approximately $1,000. The story is the same when we consider charitable giving as a fraction of household income: By this measure, religious Americans are four times as generous as their secular neighbors, even as they are a little   >>>>>   Read Entire Post

A Christmas Child

This Christmas, I pray for Tony, a boy I mentioned to you earlier this year. Let me remind you. Tony (I have changed his name) lives at the Murphy Harpst home in Georgia where he arrived carrying only a paper sack of clothes. All his possessions in a single grocery sack. Tony has been sexually abused by a number of men in his life; he has been beaten, burned, and forced to live in a box. Tony is withdrawn and angry. He has failed in 12 foster placement homes, and Murphy Harpst is his last hope. Like most of the kids who live at Murphy Harpst, Tony has tried to end his life. Death seems more hopeful to him than what he has experienced from life and adults so far.



The therapists, counselors, and teachers at Murphy Harpst will love Tony abundantly. They will do the hard work of trying to bring healing and repair to his broken soul. For the first time, Tony will have a chance at understanding the word "home." He will attend a   >>>>>   Read Entire Post