By Carrie Classon I knew it was going to rain. I looked up the weather before I headed out, and there was a 94 percent chance of rain at 7:00. That was precisely the hour I planned to walk home. “It’s going to rain,” I told my husband, Peter. “Not till later,” he said. “Google says it’s not going to rain until 9:00.” “Hmmm.” I wondered if I should bring an umbrella. The sun was shining. It was hot. I had a mile and a half to walk, and I was not really looking forward to carry

By Jan Stadtherr The juicy tomato was the subject of a column that I wrote 10 years ago. Many friends and family members have commented that it’s their favorite column. A decade later, the garden favorite is haunting me. To update you, the column is as follows: “One of my most recent blonde moments was this fall as my husband, Ron, and I were driving to Brainerd. As the car meandered around the curves of State Highway 84, a red and white sign at the end of a driveway caught m

By Tim King In June of 1970, you could still catch an east-bound Great Northern passenger train in Sauk Centre, Alexandria, and other towns up the line to Fargo, and ride in comfort to the Twin Cities. At that time, Interstate Highway 94 had just been completed and Central Minnesotans simply weren’t used to the notion that they could jump in the car to see the grandkids in the Cities in a couple of hours. Anybody can cultivate. I was 21 and working for a young farmer named Jo

By Nancy Leasman I did it. I had knee replacement surgery and am on the mend. And, I am grateful to all those who daily help people with dysfunctional joints regain their mobility. I’m grateful to the surgical team, the nurses and staff in the hospital, and my spouse for offering help with all those things one cannot manage alone after joint replacement. The physical therapy team which provides consistent assessment and encouragement cannot be thanked enough. My gratitude goe

By Marlys (Blake) Hagstrom of Hutchinson “Memories, pressed between the pages of my mind” is one of the lines in a song made popular by Elvis in 1968. When I begin to reflect on growing up in Hector, the pages of memories in my mind slowly turn and come to life… I can’t forget the five-cent ice cream cones at Evie Ahl’s Café or penny candy at the variety store. They had everything from handkerchiefs to toys. The long trek home from school always included a stop at the Berry

By Sharon Craig of Granite Falls Recently, I was in the hospital and a wonderful nurse asked me how my husband and I had achieved such a long-lasting marriage (60 years and counting). The quick response was not to end your day in anger. Don’t be afraid to say you’re sorry. My wise daughter says sometimes it’s better to be kind rather than right. Don’t let false pride keep you from apologizing when it’s needed. Our wedding day, 60 years ago. Contributed photo When I think back

By Cheryl (Rostad) Barry of Underwood My brother and sister-in-law, Brad and Karen Rostad, have been missionaries in Jamaica since the late 1980’s. They’ve witnessed tropical depressions and hurricanes, Gilbert in 1988 and Ivan in 2004. Although these storms were devastating, they pale in comparison to the monster Hurricane Melissa, which destroyed 1/3 of the island on Oct. 27-28, 2025. It was labeled a Category 5, but was more like a Category 6 because of the widespread dest

By Jim Palmer When I was young, now was the time of the year when I would start making up Christmas lists for Santa, parents, grandparents, and any other relative who was willing to send little Jimmy some Christmas joy. This year, I have made up a wish list for Senior Perspective. Now and then we have people ask us what they can do to support us... so why not make up a list. There are some specific asks in here and some more general ones, but they are all things we would love

By Darwin Anthony of Trimont I am THE FIREPLACE that is within the wall at the end of the Anthony living room. It is now late fall and I know what must happen. I must be made ready as I am something of winter. I wait to be cleaned so that I can offer cozy pleasure to those who care for me. Such pleasure comes from seeing the varied color of my fire and hearing the crackling sound as the wood within me burns. It is a sound that only an actual wood-burning fireplace can produce

By Rachel Barduson of Alexandria It seems like everything was such a big deal when I was a kid. Maybe it’s because everything was such a big deal when I was a kid. Little things. As we approach another Christmas, I guess it’s a mixture of often-forgotten little things that, strangely, I am thinking about this year. Little things, like... sitting on the floor of the car while dad was driving and mom was sitting in the passenger seat, right there on the floor between my parent

By Bill D. Ward Today’s Wisdom: “Every life holds an epic tale, even if no one alive remembers it.” Greg Melville A good friend of mine is the caretaker at our town’s cemetery. He tells me that he occasionally runs into people who are touring cemeteries collecting gravestone encounters of famous people. Do we all need to up our game a bit on our monument design? We have two famous people in our cemetery, but most tourists are there for one special one. Hildred Olson was a lit

By Carrie Classon (Written in late September) It is the time of year for vegetable gluttony. The truth is, I am a vegetable glutton all year round. I blame my mother. My mom grew up on a farm, and when my sister and I were growing up, my mother was one of the first moms in our suburb to plant a big vegetable garden. We had beans and tomatoes and zucchini, and I don’t remember what else. I loved vegetables from a very early age. My mother would serve whatever we were eating in

Alexandria man served on USS Midway, discovers his photo at museum By Julie Parent A photo of Don Van Guilder when he was a Navy sailor is posted at the USS Midway Museum in San Diego, CA. Photo contributed by Liz Winter Don Van Guilder of Alexandria, Minn. was watching a YouTube video about the USS Midway Museum when he saw one of two photos of himself on the bulkhead wall in the background. He was so shocked, he took a picture of the computer screen and showed it to his f

By Rachel Barduson of Alexandria Church basement ladies are historic figures. They go a long way back to the beginning of – in my case – time. Those historic ladies were, and still are, heroes in my estimation. They provide the magic after the sermon, the potlucks, the church suppers, the annual meetings, the ladies aid. Why would they be heroes? Because there are so many layers of detail and planning that goes into serving food at church. These ladies not only serve the foo

By Nancy Leasman of Long Prairie All work and no play….well, you know that adage well. So, Ron and I headed north, to Itasca. A relaxing time in one of the cabins at Itasca State Park. Photo by Nancy Leasman We’d rented a cabin for one night and the next day would attend the book release of the Jack Pine Writers Group’s annual Talking Stick collection of fiction, non-fiction and poetry. Our daughter, Dawn, the conservation biologist, had won honorable mention in the non-fi

By Carrie Classon I’m driving back to my parents’ home from a state park on a beautiful summer day. My mother is riding shotgun; my dad...

By Chuck Vukonich of Fergus Falls The property in the hills of Erhard. Contributed photo I own some property up in the hills of Erhard...

By Jan Stadtherr Reconnecting with memories from my past has been an obsession for me in the past few months. Nostalgia is a bittersweet...

By Jim Palmer Over the years, I have thanked both our drivers and our writers in this column, but I have only given a tip of the hat to...

By Nancy Leasman It was a semi-coolish prelude to a warm and steamy July day. I was out early to put in 3,000 steps down the road and...