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It seems like every day is named a special day of recognition. Sometimes the day observes several events. Monday was not only the celebration of Martin Luther King Day but somehow it is termed to be of all things, the most depressing day in January. Another term was “the saddest day of the year,” which falls on the third Monday in January. You may ask who established this “saddest day of the year.” Well it was created by a Welsh psychologist. It’s terrible to tie a person’s negative sad, depressing emotions to a certain day. The reason given fo...
It may be called being “old school” in these times but many people my age have thoughts, wishes and memories that would be labeled “old school” by several of the younger generation. What happened with sending out hand written thank you cards when a gift is sent to an individual or a couple? In most of today’s society that isn’t done anymore.Instead quick and easy text messages are sent, but sometimes no acknowledgement is received. It leaves the person giving the gift wondering if it was ever received or if it was appreciated. An email thank...
I just finished watching the 133rd Tournament of Roses Parade on our wide screen television and, as usual, it didn’t disappoint me. I enjoy the bright colors and all the flowers and natural nuts, rice, grasses and plants incorporated into the floats. Of course, the bands marching in time playing wonderful music is a hit. The horses ridden with the riders dressed in their finest and some in military or official uniforms looked great. My mother, always loving horses, used to say the cameras were never left long enough showing the horse and riders...
Just when I got used to writing 2022, it is about to change and I’ll have to start remembering it is 2023. It seems the years keep coming and going faster and faster. I’ve been through the growing and prosperous years of the 1950s as America grew in population and manufacturing as the WWII soldiers came marching homeward. Things were so different back then. Yes, I’ll admit I was one of those Baby Boomers. It’s hard to believe but a brand new 1955 Bel Air Chevy cost about $2,000. In 1950, a nine-room modern house in Massachusetts would cost ab...
The stores are bursting with Christmas decorations, gifts and delicious holiday menu options. Whenever I walk into such a store, it takes control to remain on point with my Christmas shopping list in hand to find only the things needed. It is hard though with so many items to see and imagine gifting or decorating our home with. In all the hustle and bustle of this Christmas season, we should remain focused on the true “Reason For The Season,” the birth of our Lord Jesus. My thoughts turn back to the simple Christmas programs at my home cou...
I’m finding fast as we age, our memory just isn’t like it used to be. It’s tempting when a person reads about all the pills that if taken can improve the memory. I never seem to follow through with purchasing them though. When I see some of the things those pills are made out of, I lose interest. A while back a dear friend gave me a small statuette of two angels standing close together. Written across their robes was the saying, “We’ll be friends until we’re old and senile...then we’ll be New friends!” Now that’s an idea. There are those d...
Here it is, the first week in December 2022! It’s beginning to feel and look like a Kansas-Nebraska December. Tuesday, it was cloudy, and the cold northern winds were blowing. North of us there were reports of slick roadways because of moisture falling and freezing. For me, it was a good day to stay inside my comfy home. Maybe it was a good day to begin decorating our home for Christmas as many are now doing but I’m really not in the true spirit yet. I could have begun baking Christmas treats and freezing them. But no, I’m not in that spirit ye...
In today’s world there seems to be so many terrible happenings, people with grudges, wars, politics that aren’t going the way we’d like, the high cost of living and people getting mad at others. We need to step back and think about the things we are thankful for. I know I’m thankful I was born here in rural America, in the times that I was raised, by the parents I had, and what I was taught. There were good morals and respect for each other instilled in us. We didn’t have to have the best of things material wise, but we knew we had everythin...
A matriarch aunt is now missing from our Heskett family. Aunt Joan died recently and has left a void in the hearts of her family. Even though she lived a ways away from the rest of her siblings, nieces and nephews, she made an effort to drive herself to about every family event that was scheduled including weddings, graduations, holiday get-togethers, birthday and anniversary celebrations and baby or wedding showers. She loved her parents and would often visit them. Whenever a sibling came back home to visit, she was there to visit also. Her...
It’s Veteran’s Day! There is nothing more stirring to the heart then watching a group of veterans as they carry the American Flag to start off a parade. Some of these local marching veterans wear their military uniforms others wear the American Legion or Veterans of Foreign Wars’ outfits. As Will Rogers was quoted about such a moment, “We can’t all be heroes. Some of us have to stand on the curb and clap as they go by.” Some of those standing on the street curb, place their hand over their heart. Men remove their caps, and some chose to re...
My farmer husband knows I do not like to pull vehicles or tractors to get them moved or started. I learned the hard way it was a good rule to enforce because of “run ins,” bad hand signal incidents and just plain bad temper moments. Recently I gave in and the rule was broken. We were to the north farmstead and I was mowing the yard. My husband had taken the 4-wheeler to the pasture to spray young cedar and locust trees. A couple of hours later my cell phone rang. It was my husband. He explained in a calm voice, “You’ve got to bring the pickup...
Be prepared as it’s almost Halloween! It’s time for the children to decide what they are going to dress up as for the “trick or treating” as they make their plans to visit from house to house. They come with their bags, knocking or ringing door bells. As soon as the door opens, they proudly shout out, “Trick or Treat.” Their bags are filled with candies. Soon afterwards, it’s time to return to their homes and inspect their sacks to see what treats are inside. Most people look forward to seeing the visiting children dressed up and try to guess...
For those who have their own desks at home or job, is your desk what you’d term as being a “disorderly” one or a “neat, orderly” one? Recently the editor of this paper shared that his desk always seems to be disorderly or cluttered. Well, I learned experts say a disorderly desk can foster creativity. Imagine that? As I sit here at my desk, I think it needs to be tidied up. Then again it is what I like to call my “nest.” It’s where I sit and peck away on my computer writing and creating. It’s where shelves are filled with sunglasses, notepads, k...
I have a sign hanging in my laundry room picturing an older pickup with the saying above it, “Many of My Favorite Memories Come From Some Old Dirt Road.” It got me to thinking of how in the last Country Roads I shared about the limestone rock that now covers many of our Jewell County roads. There was a time before that when a lot of the country roads were country dirt. I must admit some of the rides on the dirt roads were not exactly my “favorite,” but they do have a story to tell. As a farmer’s daughter, the main country road covered w...
Last week a change in the seasons finally arrived and it was certainly felt. Fall came upon us and most were ready for it. We felt the change as the summer temperatures seemed to hang on with highs remaining up into the 90s and 100s, then within a day they dropped 50 degrees. The weekend was perfect with sunshine and highs in the 70s making for a perfect weekend to get outside and take advantage of it all. Fall is my favorite season of the year. Living on a farm most all of my life, I take notice of the rural sights, sounds and scents of Fall....
It’s that time of the year when the garden produce is abundant and available for the asking or giving. The gardeners with green thumbs are bringing bags of tomatoes, squash and green peppers to share with friends and neighbors. Gardeners have been canning and freezing their produce but have decided they have reached their limit and are anxious to give it away. I am pleased when gardeners bring their extra produce to church, coffee time at the local cafe or to my house. My container gardening didn’t do well this year and so I am thankful for...
This month features several historical and memorial events we should keep in our hearts and minds. At the end of WWII, the Japanese signed surrender papers in 1945. The Benghazi Attack occurred in 2012. The terrorist attack destroying the Twin Towers and killing more than 3,000 people. Recently Queen Elizabeth II died at the age of 96, England’s longest reigning monarch. Certainly there were other historic events that occurred through the years in September but these stand out the most in my mind. Currently our attention is drawn to the d...
I’m working on something I promised myself I would never do again. My husband and I made the decision to try to sell many of our things that have been in storage and we just don’t have a need for anymore. We are having a yard sale, “By hook or by crook.” We try every day to go about rounding up these items but it all takes time. We get caught up in remembering why we bought it, where we got it, when we last used it and with some things we wonder why we never used it like we thought we would. Sometimes, items get put back into its storage...
Have you ever thought of your refrigerator exterior being a large family bumper sticker or a large family scrapbook? While visiting a friend, we were seated on bar stools in her kitchen having ice tea together and catching up on all the happenings in our communities. My attention zeroed in on the collage sticking all over the front of her double door refrigerator. As our conversation continued, I began to ask her about her photo collection on her refrigerator. She said it was her way of feeling connected to all those friends and loved ones...
Though today’s times call for fast food, hundreds of channels offered on the large screen television, loads of entertainment and the latest in technology. There are times when we realize how lucky we were growing up. I remember when the only dogs we had as pets were “mutts” No one back then owned a purebred dog. We were taught patience while waiting at least three minutes for the television to come on. We were thankful to receive a quarter, made of real silver, for an allowance. Gasoline was 30 cents a gallon and some gasoline stations offered...
Since 1929, a livestock sale barn has been located on the north edge of Mankato. The original barn has been replaced with the modern sale barn, office and pens of Mankato Livestock Inc. At a recent Friday sale day, more than 4,000 head of cattle were sold. Customers come from northern Kansas and southern Nebraska. Most of the buyers are from Smith Center, Salina, Tipton and Osborne, Kansas and Blue Hill and Exeter, Nebraska. According to the owners, the sellers "cover a wide area." Current...
We country folks don’t seem to have much trouble in locating our country destinations but for our urban guests, they often have problems. I understand why. The urban travelers are used to street signs and house numbers. It wasn’t until a few years ago the rural counties began naming rural roads. In order to receive rural mail delivery, each mail box has to be numbered. The numbers are not placed on the residence but on the mail box. When you are telling someone where you live, you tell them what style your house is, the color it’s painted, and...
About a month ago Neil Bouray received a call from a friend in Colorado who happened upon a painting in an antique shop that caught his eye and wondered if Neil would be interested in having it. The painting was of a rural setting that featured the octagonal barn that for years was at the Judy Ranch, headquarters, along Highway 36, between Mankato and Montrose. Neil told his friend he wanted the painting. After talking to his mother Kelly Bouray, both co-owners of Mankato Livestock Inc., they...
Piano playing is not for sissies! Knowing how to play the piano can be rewarding, a commitment, a challenge and comforting. Now taking piano lessons in order to learn now to play the piano can be time consuming with hours of practicing. It takes dedication, and at times, it can be down right frustrating. It takes years of lessons to accomplish what a student strives for. Yet, as a pianist and a piano teacher, I am thankful I managed to stick with it. When visiting with others who had taken lessons and decided to quit, they shared they...
As Elvis Presley sang in one of his hit songs, “I’m All Shook Up,” that is how many of us in northern Jewell County and southern Nuckols County felt a little over a week ago. A rare event happened on July 17, a peaceful Sunday, when an earthquake was felt. Some reported hearing a bang, and then dishes shook, causing people to wonder what was happening. Moments later it was confirmed an earthquake did occur just south of the Kansas-Nebraska line, southwest of Superior. Within two days, another shaking happened. It was a “follow up” earthquak...
