Daris Howard

Idaho Falls

Writer at Freelance

Award-winning author. Syndicated short story columnist. Love to talk book writing and other uplifting ideas.

Articles

Mother and Son | Meridian Magazine

2 days ago | latterdaysaintmag.com | Daris Howard

My mother has been gone for a couple of years, and I miss her. As I was thinking about her this Mother’s Day, I considered how different we were in so many ways. The main thing in which I felt she differed from me was her sense of humor. Sometimes it seemed nonexistent. Mom grew up during the great depression, and I feel that colored how she viewed everything. She took life far more seriously than I do. I have had my share of challenges, but I usually see humor in most things.
Life’s : Mother and Son

3 days ago | borgernewsherald.com | Daris Howard

My mother has been gone for a couple of years, and I miss her. As I was thinking about her this Mother’s Day, I considered how different we were in so many ways. The main thing in which I felt she differed from me was her sense of humor. Sometimes it seemed nonexistent. Mom grew up during the great depression, and I feel that colored how she viewed everything. She took life far more seriously than I do. I have had my share of challenges, but I usually see humor in most things.
Engine valves and proper teaching

1 week ago | chronicleonline.com | Daris Howard

There were times when I felt like our high school mechanic’s teacher took advantage of us for free labor. He was always purchasing old cars for us to work on. Granted, it gave us experience, but sometimes we had to work so long on some old, rusted things that I felt we didn’t have a chance to experience all the different parts of the work we were supposed to know. There were different teams, and our teacher assigned each to a different part. One team worked on the transmission.
“Interesting Things”

1 week ago | latterdaysaintmag.com | Daris Howard

On the first day of my classes, after the required roll call, I take the time to have my students introduce themselves. Many of my colleagues have told me they think that is a waste of time. But I have found it pays great dividends. Many students struggle to participate in class, afraid of saying something wrong in front of their peers. Coming from high school, where they knew many other students since kindergarten, being in a class now where they likely know no one can be especially intimidating.
Life’s Outtakes - Interesting Things

1 week ago | thecomanchechief.com | Daris Howard

On the first day of my classes, after the required roll call, I take the time to have my students introduce themselves. Many of my colleagues have told me they think that is a waste of time. But I have found it pays great dividends. Many students struggle to participate in class, afraid of saying something wrong in front of their peers.
Watering Greenhouses

2 weeks ago | postregister.com | Daris Howard

I decided it was a good time to go to the nursery to get some flowers for my wife. She loves wave petunias in hanging baskets around our deck. I went to the nursery where my daughters used to work. Everyone was working feverishly to have everything in full bloom for Mother's Day. Most of them were busy watering. The water had a fertilizer mix that the plants loved, and it helped them to grow quickly. A few were already in bloom, but others were still quite small.
Engine Valves and Proper Teaching

2 weeks ago | latterdaysaintmag.com | Daris Howard

There were times when I felt like our high school mechanic’s teacher took advantage of us for free labor. He was always purchasing old cars for us to work on. Granted, it gave us experience, but sometimes we had to work so long on some old, rusted things that I felt we didn’t have a chance to experience all the different parts of the work we were supposed to know. Also, since these cars were often from the 1940s or earlier, the parts were hard to come by.
Locked doors and strange people

2 weeks ago | chronicleonline.com | Daris Howard

I had just arrived home from work late one night when I received a call from Jared, a new neighbor. “Daris, do you have a long ladder?”“Yes,” I replied. “Could you bring it over as fast as you can? My youngest has locked herself in her bedroom, and we can’t open the door.”My wife chose to join me to get to know them better. I loaded the ladder on my small pickup, strapped it down, and we were on our way. It was only about a mile to our neighbor’s house, so we soon pulled into his driveway.
Life’s Outtakes - Engine Valves and Proper Teaching

2 weeks ago | thecomanchechief.com | Daris Howard

There were times when I felt like our high school mechanic’s teacher took advantage of us for free labor. He was always purchasing old cars for us to work on. Granted, it gave us experience, but sometimes we had to work so long on some old, rusted things that I felt we didn’t have a chance to experience all the different parts of the work we were supposed to know. Also, since these cars were often from the 1940s or earlier, the parts were hard to come by.
The grain drill

3 weeks ago | postregister.com | Daris Howard

It's planting time in our rural community. Much of the grain is in, and some of it is up just enough that the fields have a beautiful green tinge to them. In the higher country, the grain is just getting planted, and in the valley, the potato planting is moving into high gear. As with harvest, farmers often help each other or share equipment during planting. Dean, one of the older members of our community, told a story about just such a time.