HOST CONTACT: Don Mast 

Link Tree To All My Sites: ⁠⁠https://linktr.ee/aguywithbooks ⁠⁠

Email me: - ⁠⁠[email protected] ⁠

If you have never heard the verses of “Jesus Loves the Little

Jesus calls the children dear,

Jesus is the Shepherd true,

And He’ll always stand by you,

I am coming, Lord, to Thee,

Jesus loves the little children,

All the children of the world.

HOST CONTACT: Don Mast 

Link Tree To All My Sites: ⁠https://linktr.ee/aguywithbooks ⁠

Email me: - ⁠[email protected] 

It Is Well With My Soul Lyrics:

Sponsored by my favorite tea, Oliver Pluff & Company. www.oliverpluff.com. 

Sponsored by the best history website on the planet, www.TheHistoryList.com.  

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HOST CONTACT: Don Mast 

Link Tree To All My Sites: https://linktr.ee/aguywithbooks 

Email me: - [email protected] 

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A Christmas story… 

On Christmas Day in 1863, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow continued to grieve the death of his beloved second wife Fannie who had died two years prior when her housedress caught fire. Longfellow himself tried to extinguish those flames with his own body but Fannie did not survive the accident. During the subsequent two years, Henry's oldest son would enlist in the Union army to fight in the Civil War. On December 1 of that year, Henry would receive a telegram that his son had been shot during a battle of the Mine Run campaign. The location of the exit wound from the bullet would put his son at risk of being paralyzed. This father of six, now widowed, worried for the future of his children, all while cannons thundered in the south, captured his feelings as he heard the bells that Christmas day in his poem titled, 'Christmas Bells'. Yesterday as we sang this poem (now song) in our church congregation, I felt as though I could relate a little more to Longfellow and his feelings of despair that were overcome with hope by what he chose to listen to. He chose amidst the grief, amidst the cannons, amidst the fighting and hate to listen to the bells of hope. Those bells would breathe peace into his life just as they have into mine. I include below the words to the entire poem with verses that are not included in the song. They paint the beautiful picture of a man who found his hope as he bowed his head and listened more intently to his maker. "Then pealed the bells more loud and deep, God is not dead, nor doth He sleeps!" I know that bowing our heads is the first step toward hope and peace in our lives. 

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I heard the bells on Christmas Day Their old, familiar carols play, And wild and sweet The words repeat Of peace on earth, good-will to men! 

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And thought how, as the day had come, The belfries of all Christendom Had rolled along The unbroken song Of peace on earth, good-will to men! 

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Till ringing, singing on its way, The world revolved from night to day, A voice, a chime, A chant sublime Of peace on earth, good-will to men! 

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Then from each black, accursed mouth, The cannon thundered in the South, And with the sound, The carols drowned Of peace on earth, good-will to men! 

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It was as if an earthquake rent The hearth-stones of a continent, And made forlorn The households born Of peace on earth, good-will to men! 

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And in despair I bowed my head; "There is no peace on earth," I said; "For hate is strong, And mocks the song Of peace on earth, good-will to men!" 

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Then pealed the bells more loud and deep: "God is not dead, nor doth He sleep; The Wrong shall fail, The Right prevail, With peace on earth, good-will to men." 

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 The song for this episode is from Burl Ives, 1965 https://youtu.be/2nk77EOgapg

Discover the history behind the song "Yankee Doodle." 

Sponsored by my favorite tea, Oliver Pluff & Company. https://www.oliverpluff.com/.

HOST CONTACT:

Don Mast 

Link Tree To All My Sites: https://linktr.ee/aguywithbooks

Email me: - [email protected]

Audio Song: Yankee Doodle by Robert Shaw; The Robert Shaw Chorale

The full version of the song as it is known today:

Yankee Doodle went to town

A-riding on a pony,

Stuck a feather in his cap

And called it macaroni.

[Chorus]

Yankee Doodle keep it up,

Yankee Doodle dandy,

Mind the music and the step,

And with the girls be handy.

Father and I went down to camp,

Along with Captain Gooding,[a]

And there we saw the men and boys

As thick as hasty pudding.

[Chorus]

And there we saw a thousand men

As rich as Squire David,

And what they wasted every day,

I wish it could be savèd.

[Chorus]

The 'lasses they eat every day,

Would keep a house a winter;

They have so much, that I'll be bound,

They eat it when they've a mind to.

[Chorus]

And there I see a swamping[b] gun

Large as a log of maple,

Upon a deuced little cart,

A load for father's cattle.

[Chorus]

And every time they shoot it off,

It takes a horn of powder,

And makes a noise like father's gun,

Only a nation[c] louder.

[Chorus]

I went as nigh to one myself

As 'Siah's underpinning;

And father went as nigh again,

I thought the deuce was in him.

[Chorus]

Cousin Simon grew so bold,

I thought he would have cocked it;

It scared me so I shrinked it off

And hung by father's pocket.

[Chorus]

And Cap'n Davis had a gun,

He kind of clapt his hand on't

And stuck a crooked stabbing iron

Upon the little end on't

[Chorus]

And there I see a pumpkin shell

As big as mother's basin,

And every time they touched it off

They scampered like the nation.

[Chorus]

I see a little barrel too,

The heads were made of leather;

They knocked on it with little clubs

And called the folks together.

[Chorus]

And there was Cap'n Washington,

And gentle folks about him;

They say he's grown so 'tarnal proud

He will not ride without 'em.

[Chorus]

He got him on his meeting clothes,

Upon a slapping stallion;

He sat the world along in rows,

In hundreds and in millions.

[Chorus]

The flaming ribbons in his hat,

They looked so tearing fine, ah,

I wanted dreadfully to get

To give to my Jemima.

[Chorus]

I see another snarl of men

A-digging graves, they told me,

So 'tarnal long, so 'tarnal deep,

They 'tended they should hold me.

[Chorus]

It scared me so, I hooked it off,

Nor stopped, as I remember,

Nor turned about till I got home,

Locked up in mother's chamber.

[Chorus]

Boston is full of great history, Revolutionary War heroes, and legends. John Hancock, who is best known for his elaborate signature on the Declaration of Independence, died in 1793 at the relatively young age of 56. What happened to his body? ⚰️

Sponsored by my favorite tea, Oliver Pluff & Company. https://www.oliverpluff.com/. 

**I'm Sorry For The Poor Audio. As you know, I'm recording from home due to the pandemic. There was a large tree being removed from our neighbor's yard. The mic picked up every sound. 

Special Thanks to Spare Change News and the story written by Peter Muise.

HOST CONTACT:

Don Mast - [email protected]

Link Tree To All My Sites: https://linktr.ee/aguywithbooks

Most Americans know about his daredevil electrical⚡ experiment where he attached a metal key to a kite🪁 and flew it in a thunderstorm, there are many other reasons that Benjamin Franklin is known as one of the country’s most influential figures. Here are some fun facts about the man that helped shape our nation’s history. He is credited with inventing bifocals, lightning rods, flexible catheters, and swimming fins, as well as making several key discoveries about electricity. He was one of America's most influential statesmen and by many accounts, delightfully quirky weirdo.

Sponsored by my favorite tea, Oliver Pluff & Company. https://www.oliverpluff.com/. Tea History: https://oliverpluff.com/pages/tea-comes-to-america - Enjoyed Colonial Bohea Tea during the show: https://oliverpluff.com/collections/colonial-tea/products/colonial-bohea-loose-tea-in-signature-tea-tin

Benjamin Franklin’s Views on The Boston Tea Party:  https://www.bostonteapartyship.com/tea-blog/benjamin-franklins-views-on-the-boston-tea-party

Special Thanks to Weird History on Youtube and The Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum / (Historic Tours Of America).

HOST CONTACT:

Don Mast - [email protected]

Link Tree To All My Sites: https://linktr.ee/aguywithbooks

The Medical Mystery of George Washington's Death.

Sponsored by my favorite tea, Oliver Pluff & Company. https://www.oliverpluff.com/ . 

Enjoyed Cacao Shell Tea From Martha Washington https://oliverpluff.com/collections/cacao/products/cacao-shell-tea . 

HOST CONTACT:

Don Mast - [email protected] 

Link Tree To All My Sites: https://linktr.ee/aguywithbooks

EPISODE INTRO: Today is a unique episode with a totally different format. Today you are going to meet a special friend and published poet, Brian C. Miller. Brian C. Miller was born in Altoona, PA in 1977. He graduated from Penn State Altoona where he received degrees in English and Education. His poems have appeared in The Connecticut River Review, Barbaric Yawp, and The Old Red Kimono. In 2012, he had his first chapbook published by Finishing Line Press entitled, The Blue and White Tent. He is a Special Education Aide for the Altoona Area School District.

Today I am enjoying Elderberry Herbal Blend Tea ☕ by my favorite tea, Oliver Pluff & Company. https://www.oliverpluff.com/ 

BUY BRIAN'S BOOKS📚:

Finish Line Press: https://www.finishinglinepress.com/?s=brian+miller&post_type=product

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Cosmic-Tour-Brian-Miller/dp/1635346754/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=The+Cosmic+Tour+by+Brian+C.+Miller&qid=1615733337&s=books&sr=1-1

Brian's Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/brian.c.miller.52

HOST CONTACT📲:

Don Mast - [email protected] 

Link Tree To All My Sites: https://linktr.ee/aguywithbooks

EPISODE INTRO:

I explore some interesting facts about Robert Burns 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿, story teller, verse-maker, music composer, oral historian and genealogist. Tea of the day is Congou Tea, a black tea of high mastery. Sponsored by my favorite tea, Oliver Pluff & Company. https://www.oliverpluff.com/ .

THE POEM: 

A Red, Red Rose 🌹 - BY ROBERT BURNS

O my love's like a red, red rose,

That's newly sprung in June;

O my love's like the melodie

That's sweetly played in tune.

As fair art thou, my bonnie lass,

So deep in love am I;

And I will love thee still, my dear,

Till a' the seas gang dry.

Till a' the seas gang dry, my dear,

And the rocks melt wi' the sun:

O I will love thee still, my dear,

While the sands o' life shall run.

And fare thee well, my only love,

And fare thee well awhile!

And I will come again, my love,

Though it were ten thousand mile.

RESEARCH:

Ae Fond Kiss Poem Insight: https://burnsmuseum.wordpress.com/2018/08/15/an-insight-into-ae-fond-kiss/

YouTube: Listen to a beautiful version of Ae Fond Kiss: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ax021N4iaFU

HOST CONTACT:

Don Mast - [email protected] 

Link Tree To All My Sites: https://linktr.ee/aguywithbooks

EPISODE INTRO:

My goal today, is to be your cupid…. To sling some arrows 🏹 your way with this special BONUS episode… To heat things up during this cold time of year. More than just some chocolates and roses🌹… Grab your Favorite hot beverage, cuddle close with your lovely and enjoy a few love quotes and poems. Happy Valentine's Day!! 💘 Sponsored by my favorite tea, Oliver Pluff & Company. https://www.oliverpluff.com/

POEM RESEARCH:

Robert Burns: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/43812/a-red-red-rose

John Keats: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44468/bright-star-would-i-were-stedfast-as-thou-art?fbclid=IwAR1fL3GdwxW2WJ8CC5vDA_z4qPYaTJpyZBI6XZ1stA88hdK6FK7CPa4TMMk

William Wordsworth: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/45550/she-was-a-phantom-of-delight?fbclid=IwAR23auJL2sqs8Ea4vvoIvHnbpRSlnVwujjxx0cSIi13cRFOmp14HQIrHLXM

HOST CONTACT:

Don Mast - [email protected] 

Link Tree To All My Sites: https://linktr.ee/aguywithbooks