The following letters were sent to me from Sherman Davis and Leonard Jacobs (not their real names) respectively.

Letter #1
I just wanted to commend you on the columns you write in The Dillon Herald. It is refreshing to be able to read articles that reflect the real values that made the United States a great nation. Your articles give me encouragement that all is not lost as it so often appears to be based on what one hears on the news media. Each time I read your column, I think to myself that I need to let you know how much I appreciate and enjoy them, but I fail to do so. After reading your article, “An Absurd and Obscene Sight,” I decided that it was time for me to let you know my appreciation. Thank you! I pray you continue to write and point out the moral values that will keep the United States great. Our country was founded on the values found in the Bible. We will continue to be a great nation if we continue to follow the values found there. I lived in the Little Rock area and graduated from Dillon High School in 1956. I truly enjoy continuing to follow things in Dillon by way of The Dillon Herald. Thank you again for your uplifting, superb articles that are filled with down to earth common sense.

Letter #2
Dear Sir, I wanted to congratulate you on your recent article in The Dillon Herald. As a member of Main Street United Methodist Church, I believe as you do that the Bible is our guide. There are no fuzzy points about what God teaches us. None! The church will survive in spite of what some believe. You have written about this LGBT situation with facts and your beliefs. Thank you again.

After reading the previous letters from Mr. Davis and Mr. Jacobs, I got the idea about today’s column. Perhaps many people who read my columns, as well as the ones that are masterfully written by my colleague, Carley Wiggins, do not understand that we (like everyone else) occasionally need to be commended and encouraged for the time and effort we devote to these columns.
Though we do not write them to receive a pat on the back or personal praise, a little encouragement and reassurance from those who read them would certainly give us more motivation and greater incentive to keep producing them.
Like any chef, artist, and all people who devote their time and talent in an endeavor to create or produce a product for the public to be served and benefitted by, we need to know that our labor is not in vain and there are people out there who we are connecting with who truly appreciate our effort and talent.
Like any artist or creative person, our writing is not done to amuse or entertain us, but to enlighten, encourage, and empower others with information concerning history and issues that are relevant to our community and locale.
I am convinced that the masters of literature, as well as the great composers of music, did not create their masterpieces just so they could read, hear, and enjoy their works themselves.
Like all true artists, composers, and all who create, their works were done to bless and enrich others culturally, educationally, and amusingly. Nevertheless, with that having been stated, most if not many writers and artists are creative and compulsive people when it comes to their craft. Like me, they are somewhat addicted to their art. Their primary reason for writing, composing, or doing what their ability and skill has proven to be is driven by an innate and almost insatiable passion.
So at the end of the day, though people like me certainly appreciate people reading and commenting on what I have discussed in my columns, whether they agree or disagree, it is truly a source of encouragement and motivation that I do not take for granted.
However, in spite of whether people let me know by letter, phone call, or face-to-face that they read and get something out of my columns or not, I will not be discouraged, distracted, or defer from doing what I was born to do.
Again, thank you Mr. Davis, Mr. Jacobs, and all the people, who are in any way inspired and enlightened by my columns.
I pray that you will continue to read them and send me feedback whether positive or negative from time to time.