By Isaac Vick The Biden administration finds itself entangled in a complex web of diplomacy and crisis management in the Middle East, as it grapples with the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. The president and his top diplomat, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, face a daunting challenge in persuading the Israeli government to temporarily halt its offensive against … [Read more...]
Peering at the Past Mons Fladager- Painter, Entrepreneur, Father of Spring Grove
Part two of a series “No one man can be given more credit for the development of the city of Spring Grove than Mons Fladager,” wrote area historian Jane Briggs Palen, who noted that there were only two inhabitants in Spring Grove – Robert McCormick and William Hinckley – when Fladager arrived in 1859. He operated a store in a log hut, that with help from two sons and … [Read more...]
Your Flying Farmer – Don’t Settle for the Postcard
Don’t Settle for the Postcard I know you’ve seen it. That postcard that makes you long to be at the beach. As our Minnesota winter starts to rev up, the feeling in my toes and fingers starts to go away. My aunt, who grew up on the farm, says, “Winter means pain.” The cold gets in and likes to stay. That’s where the postcard comes in. It’s bright, with blue water, white sand, … [Read more...]
It Was Ice To Be There if Juneau What I Mean
Alaska eats more ice cream per capita than any other state. My neighbor Crandall, who told his doctor he isn’t overweight, he’s just easy to see, doesn’t know for certain if Alaska eats that much ice cream, but he thinks it does. He’s been accused of suspecting more than he knows. Ragged clouds cling to Juneau and its sprawling mountains, fjords and ice fields. Juneau is a … [Read more...]
Peering at the Past: Settled First by Yankees, Mostly by Norwegians
Spring Grove, the first Norwegian settlement in Minnesota, is still known for its Norwegian heritage. But the non-Norwegian name was given to the village by Pennsylvania printer James Smith, who in 1852 was Spring Grove’s first settler. His 1853 store was the first business. Smith would also be the first Justice of the Peace and postmaster. Before the influx of Norwegian … [Read more...]
Journal Writing Project “The Tale Of Despereaux” and Why This Book Helped and Changed Me for the Better
By Maggie Dempewolf Never would I have thought, at the young age of 10, that picking up “The Tale of Despereaux“ from the school library in the fifth grade would change me for the better. Looking back on it now, at the age of 18 with an expansive collection of books, I am so glad that my younger self chose to do what she did. So here is the telling of how one book changed … [Read more...]
Mr. Rooster
Mr. Rooster This morning my daughter and I dug up bulbs from our flowerbeds to preserve them till next spring. After completing our task, I chose to take a walk on the farm. I noticed that the cool, crisp air of autumn was carrying on it the sounds of the harvest. As I walked, I could hear the laboring of our neighbor’s combine as it moved down the amber swaths of … [Read more...]
You Know the Thanksgiving Dinner Ran Long When Santa Shows Up
No jiggling of a handle was required. To prepare for the feast of feasts, the outhouse had been equipped with store-bought toilet paper and comforting peach papers. A Monkey Ward’s catalog was kept in reserve. We have Thanksgiving because we need to be reminded of all the beauty there is in the world. We were blessed but didn’t know those were the good old days. We had … [Read more...]
Journal Writing Project: Gender-affirming Care; Can It Save Lives?
By Saturn Ludewig In case anyone does not know what the terms referring to one’s gender mean, transgender is defined, by a Google search, as “denoting or relating to a person whose gender identity does not correspond with the sex registered for them at birth,” a transgender man is someone who was born as a female and labeled as a woman but is transitioning to become a man, … [Read more...]
Pastor Devotions: Respecting an Establishment of Religion
By Pastor Jeff Jacobs Unity Lutheran Parish - St. Paul, Saetersdal and St. Matthew’s, Granger This week we recall again the story of the Mayflower Pilgrims’ coming to a new land. And a primary reason they came was religious freedom. They’d rejected the “trappings” of the Church of England and sought to live and worship in a simpler, “purer” faith. Many early settlers … [Read more...]