Mt. Pleasant News

Admittedly, I was raised in a different era than today's young people.Most mothers were stay-at-home mothers during my formative years. Without any disrespect to today's working mothers, I think we were better off to have grown up with mothers nearby. I realize that in today's economics, a mother staying home often is not an option.I consider myself doubly blessed because not only was my mother always there, my ...

I will be teaching a creative writing class in my home in Mt. Pleasant this January and February. We will meet for six sessions on Saturday mornings for a couple of hours to discuss your writing. Ginnie may provide chocolate chip cookies if I can sweet talk her into it. Class size is limited to six. If interested, my contact info is at the end of this column.Speaking of Ginnie, I think she's slipping a little, ...

Psalms 32:3-4: When I refused to confess my sin, I was weak and miserable and I groaned all day long.Carrying around sin in your soul is a miserable way to live. If you care at all about the condition of your soul and your relationship with God, you will be troubled by sin. You will not be at peace with God or yourself. You will have a sense of guilt over your sin. You will wonder if anyone else knows what you ...

The days before Christmas were quickly rushing by during the winter of 2012 when I was working as a cashier at Hy-Vee. I spent many of those days picking up extra shifts during the holiday break, trying to make some extra cash to pay for Christmas gifts and put in good face time with my managers.I don't remember anyone explicitly telling me to wish customers a ?happy holiday? instead of ?merry Christmas,? but it ...

Dec. 12 is hard for 62-year old Susie Clark. It's the date her teenage daughter, Lisa, passed away 15 years ago. Memories come flooding back, like the murky water spilling over the dam at Oakland Mills. It can be a Christmas tree ornament or a note found from years past or Christmas music that trigger the memories lying just beneath the surface.I published Susie Clark's story in my Empty Nest column a little ...

By Jean Thomson December is a lighter month for gardeners, but it still is a gardening month. Fortunately, given busy schedules with other tasks, some of the gardening activities are completely optional.For example, you may have developed a personal wish list of desirable garden tools and gloves, but it is entirely up to you whether you share it with family and friends. Similarly, you might choose to cut back ...

My podcast momentarily faded out as a faint chirp indicated there was breaking news. My eyes broke away from my computer screen just as the news alert scrolled across the screen of my iPhone.Matt Lauer had been fired from the 'Today' show.I didn't even need to read the story to guess why he had been fired. Another day, another man I had admired accused of sexual misconduct.In October, a slew of women came ...

About three decades ago, I was sitting in the office of Head Football Coach Algona Garrigan, gathering information for a preview article on the Golden Bears' next football game.Garrigan would be hosting Carroll Kuemper. One of the standard questions for a preview article was naming standout players of the opponent.One of the first Kuemper Knights mentioned was a senior offensive/defensive lineman by the name of ...

I was leaning on the tailgate of the pickup, talking on my smartphone, when there was a flurry, squawk and something gripped my shoulder like a claw. I'll be danged if a hen hadn't flown up and landed on my shoulder. She seemed to be really curious about the phone I was holding, and inched her way down my arm to where she could get a better look at what I was holding.?What the heck?? I thought. ?No one's going ...

Psalms 24:3-6, ?Who may climb the mountain of the LORD? Who may stand in his holy place? Only those whose hands and hearts are pure, who do not worship idols and never tell lies. They will receive the LORD's blessing and have right standing with God their savior. They alone may enter God's presence and worship the God of Israel.?Who may climb to the mountain where God is? Who dares to approach God, whose ...

Thank Goodness It's Thanks Giving! I know, Thanksgiving is one word, but I wanted to do a spinoff of TGIF.November is a memorable month for me, and I have a lot to be thankful for. Twenty-eight years ago this November, I was so drunk in my own home, I fell and crashed through the glass top of my coffee table, cut myself to smithereens and nearly bled to death. Outside of that, I didn't have a problem with drugs ...

I Thess. 5:16-18, ?Always be joyful. Keep on praying. No matter what happens, always be thankful, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.?I don't know about you, but I wish the Lord had not put that word always in this verse. How can anyone always be anything, let alone joyful? Maybe the key to success is found in the next sentence. Keep on praying. Prayer certainly helps us to be joyful. How ...