I felt like Ninny the Pooh. I’d called a friend by his brother’s name. Twice. How did I get so stupid? I didn’t study for it. I’ve said dumber things. This brain cramp barely moves the needle on the stupidity scale, but it annoyed me. I should be used to it because as soon as we can form words, we’ve said something stupid enough to hear crickets chirping. I was in … [Read more...]
Grappling with the complexities of 365 seasons annually
The chill is gone. Summer begins when the last snowman melts. It can’t be summer already. Summer was just here. We’re finding our way back to things. It helps if the weather is a little better than just OK – lovely green and blue days with grasses swaying in the gentle breeze. Those days cause me to consider E. B. White who wrote, “I arise in the morning torn between a … [Read more...]
The Plant Lady
I’ve got plants in tough places... We all have it; the frustrating spot in the garden where nothing seems to want to grow. Many gardeners respond by planting tough plants. Hosta for shade, even though the deer eat it. Iris for full sun, even though the bloom time is so short. Some plants, although challenging to find, are great candidates for tough spaces in the landscape. The … [Read more...]
Peering at the Past By canal boat or cattle car, westward toward Minnesota
Norwegian emigration, part 5 Few European immigrants, including Norwegians, were aware of the vastness of North American. Once reaching the port cities of New York or Quebec, many thought they were near their destination. However, after months of sailing, they were still hundreds of miles away from the agricultural west. Before trains arrived in the 1850s, the route west … [Read more...]
Pastor Devotions – Cornerstones
By Pastor Pam Seebach Harmony, Mabel, and Newburg United Methodist Churches A few years ago, my husband decided to build a woodshed in our side yard. Well, our house is built on top of a hill and the yard slopes away on both sides. As he considered various locations for the woodshed, it became apparent that the cornerstone of the building was going to have to be very … [Read more...]
Life is like a jigsaw puzzle only way different
I was so tired, I had to do the dishes in bed. My morning had begun in a garage where his noises were funnier than those made by my car. The mechanic leaned on the fender as he jiggled things under the hood. He smiled as if the exercise provided a modicum of excitement. Maybe it was a grimace or gas. He was one of those guys who spends an unlimited amount of time to achieve … [Read more...]
Peering at the Past Plentiful, fertile and affordable – but an ocean away
Norwegian emigration, part 2 Before becoming a Houston County resident in Black Hammer, Gunhild Tiegen - after 16 years of marriage - had become a widow in Norway in 1860 with no money, no land, few skills and six children, ages 13 to 1. Before farming his own land near Riceford, Ole Gunderson Treangen had been a Norwegian tenant farmer and son of a tenant farmer, who saw a … [Read more...]
Pastor Devotions – Family values
By Pastor Jeff Jacobs Unity Lutheran Parish - St. Paul, Saetersdal and St. Matthew’s, Granger We usually consider the Bible very family oriented. God is our Father, and we are sisters and brothers in Christ’s family. The first of the Ten Commandments dealing with human relationships is “Honor your father and your mother.” Jesus welcomed children and defended marriage … [Read more...]
Good luck finding good luck
I was talking to a Billiken on a shelf. The Billiken is a chubby, comic, charm doll/figure given to me by a tour group to Alaska, where natives render Billikens in carvings as good luck charms. To buy a Billiken gives the purchaser luck, but to have one given to you is better luck. The Billiken is a mythical good-luck figure who represents “things as they ought to be” and … [Read more...]
Peering at the Past Leaving Norway for America? Pack a lot of lunches
Many residents of Houston County in 2021 are descended from settlers who arrived in the middle-to-late 19th century (1800s). Annual Syttende Mai (Norwegian Independence Day) celebrations in Spring Grove honor the area’s Norwegian heritage. There are approximately four and half million Norwegian Americans, the 10th largest European ancestry group in the United States. Most live … [Read more...]