An Arkies Musings

My An Arkie's Faith column from the September 27, 2023, issue of The Polk County Pulse. The windshield wipers beat furiously as they tried in vain to keep the windshield clear. Flashing sheets of water crossed the road as the rain came down in waves. My hands gripped the steering wheel, maybe too tightly, and I thought, “Why am I driving to Fort Smith through this terrible storm?”  A few days earlier, I learned that a favorite group, Arbour Season, would be playing in the area. I messaged them to get more information, and they replied, “We are playing at something called the Bakery District in Fort Smith. Is that too far for you?” “What time is the concert,” I asked. “6 p.m. Thank you so much again for reaching out! Hope to see you!” was the reply. So, I was driving through a massive storm to see Arbour Season in concert. I had been listening to their music and watching their YouTube channel for months and was excited to see them. They describe themselves as “an indie/folk husband ...

My An Arkie's Faith column from the September 20, 2023, issue of The Polk County Pulse. The wind buffeted the little Maverick pickup as we drove through Western Kansas on Interstate 70. My wife and I were on our way to Loveland, Colorado, to attend our 50-year high school reunion. The road seemed to stretch on forever as the wind continued to blow. As we crossed the state line between Kansas and Colorado, a dilapidated sign read, “Welcome to Colorful Colorado.”  I surveyed the landscape around me and saw nothing but brown, tan, and beige. There was nothing colorful that I could see. The Eastern Colorado plains are among the most sparsely populated areas in the continental United States. The dry grasslands stretched before me as far as the eye could see. Occasionally, there would be a farmstead with a few trees around it to break up the monotonous tan of the dry grasslands.  Before long, we came to the exit to Stratton, and I turned off the interstate and drove into town. I nee...

My An Arkie's Faith column from the September 13, 2023, issue of The Polk County Pulse. It has been fifty years since I graduated from high school, but I can still remember the first day of my senior year. I sometimes have trouble remembering past events, but this day is still in sharp focus. As I found a seat in Mr. Brost’s history class, the most beautiful girl I had ever seen walked into the classroom.  Her blonde curls took my breath away as she walked into class that morning. But I was too shy to talk to girls, so I knew she would never be a part of my life other than being admired from across the room. As I tried to bring my focus back to Mr. Brost standing at the front of the room, I heard him say something about a learning packet. “What is a learning packet?” I wondered. Mr. Brost went on to explain. He would choose five students to produce a weekly learning packet for the other students. Mr. Brost picked five students who would meet in the library instead of coming to clas...

My An Arkie's Faith column from the September 6, 2023, issue of The Polk County Pulse. I'm so thankful for my customers and the business I've been blessed with. Mena is a beautiful place to run a business. So many of my customers feel more like friends. I enjoy visiting with my customers and learning their stories. I have been particularly blessed the past few weeks as customers have brought produce from their gardens. It is encouraging when customers tell me that they enjoy reading my articles. Several have made special trips to my shop to say they enjoyed and appreciated a specific article. One customer who made a special trip to see me is Tom Cody. When I worked for him some time ago, I got to know him and learned about his fascinating life on the railroad. I was so interested in his stories, that I wrote about him in one of my articles. When he stopped by my shop to visit, he gave me a stack of hand-typed stories that he had written.  As I read through Tom’s stories tha...