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Welcome to Mark My View

If you're looking for polished essays filled with words that require a dictionary every third paragraph, you may have wandered into the wrong bookstore.

Welcome anyway.

My name is Mark, and this little corner of the internet is where I've decided to keep the stories I've collected over the years.

Some are funny.

Most are true.

Some are both.

You'll find stories about growing up in small-town America, conversations with strangers who climbed into the back seat of my Lyft, observations about life that usually begin with me wondering, "How in the world did we get here?", and a growing collection of Bible stories told through the eyes of an ordinary guy who asks a lot of questions.

I'm not a pastor.

I'm not a historian.

I'm certainly not a theologian.

I'm just someone who has lived long enough to discover that almost everyone has a story worth telling if you'll sit still long enough to listen.

A few years ago, after a serious illness landed me in the hospital, one of my doctors gave me some advice that changed the direction of my life.

He told me I should write.

At the time, I thought he was a little crazy.

As it turns out, he may have been the smartest doctor I ever met.

These days I write because I enjoy it. If something I write makes you smile, makes you think, reminds you of your hometown, or helps you see an old Bible story in a new way, then the time spent writing it was well worth it.

The easiest way to get started is to wander through the shelves.

If you're interested in Bible stories, begin with Talking Snakes.

If you enjoy memories of small-town America, head over to Small Town Stories.

If you've ever wondered what it's like to drive strangers around for a living, you'll probably enjoy The Lyft Shift.

If you're just here for the sarcasm, don't worry.

You'll find plenty of that, too.

So grab a cup of coffee, settle into a comfortable chair, and stay as long as you'd like.

I'm glad you stopped by.

— Mark Earl