Columnists

Receiving faith in god as a kid

“Let the little children come to me.” There is something encouraging about kids feeling safe in church. You have probably seen these kids before. The kids that feel safe are the ones that sing loudly, move quickly, and don’t care that someone else is talking. This week at First...

Sniffing the south end of a porcupine

Echoes from the Loafers’ Club Meeting I’m glad it’s summer and not winter. Do you like hot, muggy weather? No, but think how terrible it would be to shovel snow in this heat. Driving by Bruce's drive I have a wonderful neighbor named Bruce. Whenever I pass his drive, thoughts occur...

Fortunate, thankful to be a boomer

My class reunion will be held in August. I graduated from Austin High School. It will be the 55th year reunion; several of my classmates have passed on, but our class had well over 500 members, so there are still many people to see and catch up with. As I reflect, I feel very fortunate and...

Summer is slowing down

For some reason it feels like summer is almost over. There are a lot of clues floating around that tell me it is almost over allow me to share. First off, I hear the band just about every day. As I slow down at night, check how dry my lawn is, water my vegetables on my porch, I hear the drums...

Float on the Pelican Breeze this summer

Echoes from the Loafers’ Club Meeting I had a Great Uncle August. My mother talked often about his funeral. When was his funeral? I’m not sure what year it was, but it was the end of August. Driving by Bruce's drive I have a wonderful neighbor named Bruce. Whenever I pass his drive...

More to Loon Lake than meets the eye

I ran into Dave Dunn one day and he mentioned an idea for a Pioneer article; an article on Waseca’s Loon Lake. The Bailey House at the Historical Society has files of just about everything that has taken place in Waseca County. Virginia McCarthy who works at the Bailey House, handed me a plump,...

On a mission in the year 2023

What is missional living? From a young age I prepared to go into missions work. It was my goal to tell people about Jesus and help them form into churches to continue the work. My undergraduate degree was in Missions and that education helped form my ideas on what a church is and how it should...

How many books did Al bring to F&C days

Echoes from the Loafers’ Club Meeting My dog can find anything I ask it to. What kind of dog is it? It’s a LabraGoogle. Driving by Bruce's drive I have a wonderful neighbor named Bruce. Deep thoughts occur as I drive past his drive. The sun was shining as I put soil in with a plant...

Turning dreams into results

I struggle to dream. I am not talking about when we go to sleep at night and dreams come, well, I struggle with that too, but I am talking about the preferred future dreaming. Think about your future, what do you want your life to be like in the next 20 years? Is that too far? What about 10...

Turkey vulture or peace eagle?

Echoes from the Loafers’ Club Meeting I dropped my watch into the Le Sueur River and a year and a half later, it was still running. Your watch was still running? No, the river. Driving by Bruce's drive I have a wonderful neighbor named Bruce. Deep thoughts occur as I drive past his...