Columns

Hummingbird cake history

Everything holds a history, particularly delicious desserts. Take pie, for example, spelled “pye” in medieval England. Remember the nursery rhyme “Sing a Song of Sixpence”? Indeed, at one time in British culture, live birds flew from pies in surprise entertainment for...

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The Scout’s Report: Check Your Sources

This morning I handled a few domestic chores. These included checking the oil in the car as well as air pressure and giving the old Ford a wash. But I failed to use a list, so when I came inside to tackle some cyber chores, I saw an empty feeder hanging in the burning...

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My somewhat agrarian life

Crows call my focus to the treetops – a sign my saunter interrupted their feast of prey. Within a few steps, I find a dead rabbit in my path. I occasionally encounter this sad sight on my walks, the auto's intrusion of the natural world's cycle of capture, kill and...

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Revival can happen for you as well

They came, usually, in the fall and spring. Often, they were a week-long event with services of around two hours in length each night. The phenomenon was revival. The purpose of revival meetings was to rekindle a passionate love for Jesus Christ and bring people to...

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Good medicine to warm our souls

After our "Friends of Herbs" program Wednesday morning at Seven Ponds Nature Center, I drove south twenty-one miles to my favorite grocery store. I've learned the aisles in Fresh Thyme, where to find ginger root (more accurately a rhizome) in their produce section....

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Spring fever

Today I am so happy that the sun is shining and I am alive. What a turbolic (made up word) world it has been so far this week, and it’s only Wednesday. Glad the sun is out, glad the snow is almost gone, glad the State of the Union message went out, and no serious...

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Step by step at Granny’s house

Nothing thrilled me more than the adventure of sleeping in the back window of Dad's 1949 Chrysler on our trip to Granny's house. All it took was her phone call to Mom in July or August when Granny said, "Sadie, the garden's in. Come on down." The following Saturday...

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Ed D’Arcy hired as village marshal

Edward “Ed” James D’Arcy was born October 13, 1924 in Saginaw, Saginaw, Michigan to Joseph Melvin Miller D’Arcy (1901-1973) and Irene Jesse Francis D’Arcy (1903-1986). He was the third of four children – sister, Evelyn Irene (1921-1921), brother, J. D. Francis...

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Last two hours of daylight

Gloriously, sunshine satisfied the weather forecast last Tuesday – perfect for pruning my dwarf apple and pear trees within Richardson Wright's recommended January timeline. The extended sunset allowed me to accomplish the day's work on my desk, plus the outdoor...

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The Bible for survival

When I was little, we learned many songs in Sunday school. There was "Jesus Loves Me," "Jesus Loves the Little Children of the World," "The B I B L E," and "I'm in the Lord's Army," among many others. I'm not completely certain of this, but it seems to me that the...

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