Blog - M.B. HENRY

A Writer's Story: Rise Above the Criticism

Writer's Journey

May 19, 2025

by MBHenry

Let’s face it. Everybody has an opinion these days. No matter what career you get into, no matter what you choose to do with your life, someone is going to have something to say about it. I really like to think, though, that people truly mean well with their opinions (in most cases, anyway). No...

Route 66 Series: See You Later, Crater

History, Route 66

April 10, 2023

by MBHenry

There’s something very unsettling to me about meteors. While most of them are harmless, burning up into crumbs when they pass through earth’s atmosphere, a rare few of them are not. A rare few of them, you could say, pack a knock-out punch. I think most experts agree now that a meteor and its ensuing...

The Ferris Wheel: A Guide to Dealing with Nay Sayers

History

May 18, 2020

by MBHenry

Has anyone ever told you you’re crazy? You hit them with an idea you’re super stoked about, only to have them slap it down with a callous wave of the hand. I’ve received plenty of this as an aspiring writer, and those wave-offs can hurt. They can chip away at you until the doubt hijacks...

Poetry Break - "Let Me Tell You How I Died" - Iwo Jima

History, World War II

October 3, 2018

by MBHenry

Boy we're moving fast through the first part of three for my poem epic. Part I is split into seven segments and covers various angles of WWII. Here for you is Segment 5 about the Battle of Iwo Jima and the flag raising atop Mt. Suribachi, a moment that I always find moving when I...

What's In a Name? Ask King Tut.

History

January 15, 2019

by MBHenry

Once upon a time there lived a young girl who was obsessed with Ancient Egypt. She read any book about it she could get her hands on. She dressed as an Egyptian Queen for Halloween. Hieroglyphics mesmerized her, and she even learned how to write her name in them. The lives of pharaohs, and especially their mummy tombs...

A Non-Hallmark History of Valentine's Day

History

February 12, 2018

by MBHenry

Alright, I'll be honest. I’ve never been a big fan of Valentine’s Day. First of all, it’s too close to my birthday. It also doesn’t help that for many Valentine days, I was single. There are few things more annoying than watching everyone celebrate a day for lovers when you don’t have one yourself. I...

Poetry Break - "Let Me Tell You How I Died" - Normandy

History, World War II

August 20, 2018

by MBHenry

Well, we're home. The adventure is over. It was so amazing that I'm still processing a lot of it. I saw places with my own eyes that I've read about and written about for over a decade. I ran my fingers through the sand at Omaha Beach and Sword Beach. I wove through a real...

The Angel of Marye's Heights

Civil War, History

July 14, 2017

by MBHenry

His story is one of the most famous from the American Civil War, and it spawned a monument in Fredericksburg, Virginia, that still stands today. His actions atop a blood-soaked battlefield captured imaginations and hearts even in the modern era. This is the story of Richard Rowland Kirkland, otherwise known as the Angel of Marye’s...

A Tale of Two World Wars and Christmas Ornaments

History, World War I, World War II

December 12, 2017

by MBHenry

Once upon a time, deep in the mountains of Germany, there lay a charming little village called Lauscha. It was surrounded by snowy slopes and magnificent pine trees, and generations of glassblowers called it home. Their town was extra-special too, because since the mid-1800s, they had made Christmas their primary trade. The traditional German Tannenbaum...

M&Ms: A Crunchy, Colorful History

Candy, History

March 20, 2023

by MBHenry

Have you seen the news? Despite all the craziness going on around the world, what with wars, climate changes, and pandemics, M&Ms somehow managed to snag a fair share of headlines lately. That’s right - M&Ms. The candy that’s been around so long, and that has become so familiar on store shelves, that we don’t...