From the Home Place

February 20, 2026

Boo! It’s -6 degrees outside at 3 a.m. Today’s high is to be 28, with partial sun. Tomorrow is above freezing with full sun, good-by snow.

Last night I did a zoom meeting with seven of the young men I meet with each Thursday, one guy needed to attend a family gathering, which I’m in full support of. These eight young guys range from contractors, feedlot managers, ranchers, to seminary students. A couple are married with children, others are not. It sounds like we may be gaining a couple more men next week.

During last night’s gathering I asked about what kind of dad they had. Two of the seven had good dads that were involved in their lives, the rest did not. Sadly, those statistics are very normal for boys and young men in America today. For so many of these young fellows, dad was either absent or uninvolved.

We talked of how a pendulum that is at 9 o’clock, will swing all the way over to 3 o’clock when it is released. That pendulum will not automatically find center at 6 o’clock. In fact, when the pendulum is released at 9 o’clock it will swing back and forth several times before it will find center and rest at a new balance.

Manhood in America sat at 9 o’clock for several centuries. Most men of old were somewhat or totally bullies. Demanding, hitting, cussing and living life primarily for self. In the mid-1900’s culture released the pendulum from a male-controlled culture at 9 o’clock, thinking that it would immediately find it’s center at 6 o’clock, it did not. No, instead it naturally swung over to the other extreme of 3 o’clock!

As such, we now live in a female-controlled society. Just turn on your television set and watch most any program you wish. You will soon discover that on television, women are now the head of all vital governmental agencies, hospitals, police stations, and most importantly, homes. Since the recent Winter Olympics, I have seen commercial after commercial portraying the winning attitude of female athletes, and not once have I seen a male portrayed in the same setting. I will confess, I probably just missed that commercial, but miss it I did.

For years, young men have grown up under the motto, “Anything a man can do, a woman can do better.” Is it any wonder that we have so many male-born boys, who now think it to be better to be a female? And don’t get me started on making television programs and movies about drag queens as the popular decision for a male.

Loved ones, sixty years ago, we turned the pendulum loose from 9 o’clock in an attempt to get away from a male-controlled society, a move that I was in agreement with. But our method was bad! We have now created a counter cultural catastrophe. We didn’t fix a problem; we created a disaster.

I am so blessed to meet with eight young men who want to be loving, caring, gentle, compassionate; yet they also want to be the man God created them to be! The ones who are married are very good husbands and dads. Every one of these men, including the old guy who gets to lead the group, have great friendships with ladies. But each one of us fully realizes that our Heavenly Father created us male for a purpose during the time in which we live. That purpose was not to constantly be portrayed as dumb and wrong.

When asked “Why so few of you are married?” The answer was, “It’s almost impossible to find a young lady who loves God and is grateful that He created her as a female.” What have we done to our culture of young men and women? No, I am not saying that every young person has to get married and have a family. In fact, I am saying that in its present condition, our culture is probably better off if they don’t get married. The problem is, they are still having children, for the most part, confused children.

Well, I must get on with the day. I’m quite sure that I have angered some with this writing, and that is fine. But be angry enough to get involved in the process of helping this great nation find a proper balance in raising godly young ladies and men. In my opinion, we are not there yet, though there are several glimmers of light within many churches and homes. Yes, I agree, “a movement starts with one.” Perhaps we need to be busy at producing and reproducing that one, instead of shooting them?

Praying for America with you, Neal