Sugar Grove
By Paula Mitchell
Country is…picking blackberries…cutting a pumpkin…dyeing eggs…drinking sassafras tea…building a campfire…watching the moon…noticing butterflies…weeding the garden…eating ramps…enjoying the changing of leaves…wading in the creek…sitting on the back porch…catching tadpoles…going fishing…watching a sunrise/sunset…making mud pies…listening to the whippoorwills…finding cloud pictures…blowing dandelion blooms…watching a cocoon turn into a butterfly….enjoy eating potpie…roasting marshmallows…having a picnic…going on a bicycle ride…swatting flies and mosquitoes…seeing a bird nest…jumping puddles…playing leap frog…taking a walk in the woods…jumping into a pile of leaves…hearing a bob white sing…hunting for mushrooms…raising a garden…sitting around a campfire…eating apple pie…knowing your family…helping a stranger…listening to ghost stories…looking at the stars…catching fireflies…filling hummingbird feeders…walking in the moonlight…having a good laugh…teaching children right from wrong…loving the town you live in…reading the weekly local paper…working for a living…watching baby ducks swim behind their mother…romping with a puppy…skipping rocks on the pond…watering the flowers…attending reunions…going to church…making ice cream…hugging your grandparents…spitting watermelon seeds…festivals…carnivals…vacation…camping.
Living in the country is truly a blessing in so many ways.
Life’s instructions for daily use include the following:
- Forget the Joneses.
- Never deprive someone of hope. It may be all he has.
- Don’t forget, a person’s greatest emotional need is to feel appreciated.
- Remember that overnight success usually takes about 15 years.
- Leave everything better than one found it.
The neighborhood was all abuzz with the happenings this past week. A hard frost arrived Thursday morning; and although it really wasn’t welcomed, it is that time of the year. Then the Northern Lights have captivated everyone. How often does that occur this far south? They were gorgeous and spectacular.
This week’s quotes are as follows:
“The trees are in the autumn beauty, the woodland paths are dry, under the October twilight the water mirrors a still sky.” — William Butler Yeats
“Those who say it can’t be done are usually interrupted by others doing it.” — James Baldwin
“We can find joy in the world if that’s what we’re looking for. So that is my wish for you. Bravery and joy.” — Neil Gaiman
“At every phase of your life, look at your options. Please, do not select boring ones.” — Barbara Hillary
“When the children on The Waltons heard that I worked with Laurel and Hardy, I was in.” — Ellen Corby
Relax and unwind on the front porch to hear the “Talk of The Grove.”
Natalie Nieves of Huntington spent the weekend visiting in the home of her grandparents, Willard and Judy Rader.
Phil Downs visited with K.D. Puffenbarger this week. Other visitors were Martena and Edmund Malack. Edmund had returned state side from being stationed at Afghanistan, to see his newly born son, Warren Charles, who was born Sept. 22. Phil was able to hold this great-grandson of K.D.
Evelyn Varner accompanied Erma Moats to her 65th high school reunion which was held Saturday at the Wood Grill in Harrisonburg, Virginia. On Thursday, Evelyn enjoyed the senior citizen hay ride. The ride took them out to Smith Creek. Judy Costello spent the weekend with her mother, Evelyn.
Clickety clacks for the chin waggers are as follows:
- Kangaroos and emus rarely walk backward, which is one reason they appear on the Australian coat of arms.
- Arthur Ashe became the first black man to win the Wimbledon singles title.
- In 1946, the bikini bathing suit was created and named after the Pacific Island where the atomic bomb was being tested.
- One of Frank Lloyd Wright’s sons, John, was the inventor of Lincoln Logs.
- Graceland is the second most visited house in America, with more than 650,000 visitors a year; it is second only to the White House.
Remainder of the October birthdays: Ann Thompson, 16th; Jessica Parker, Tonya Simon and Sharon Crider, 17th; Jenny Rogers, Ruth Nelson and Terry Godfrey, 18th; Betty Lou McGahey and Kenneth Morris, 19th; Rhonda Borror and Karen Schulz, 21st; Angie Propst and Gary McDonald, 23rd; Shelby Bible and Cindy Puffenbarger, 24th; Logan Fisher, 27th: Teresa Bowers and Jim Brown, 28th; Mike Simmons, 29th; Sue Sponaugle and Debbie Propst, 30th; and Judy Rexrode, Chris Wilburn and Dottie Mitchell, 31st.
Concerns are for the following: Bob Adamson, Dyer Anderson, John Ashley, Roger Ashley, Mercedes Aumann, Richard Bennett, “Bo” Boggs, Marie Cole, Christian Dasher, Phil Downs, Benny Evick, Isaac Eye, Linda Eye, Marie Eye, Mary Eye, Thelma Fleisher, Carl Gant, David Gillespie, Lola Graham, Patsy Green, JC Hammer, Marlene Harman, Adam and Jennifer Harper, Missy Harrison, Marvin Hartman, Steve and Armanda Heavner, Starr Hedrick, Jim Hiner, Evan Hise, Tim Hively, George Hevener, Edsel and Mary Ann Hogan, Virgil Homan, Jr., Adalbert Hoover, Keith Hoover, Myrtle Hoover, Tim L. Hoover, Debbie and Enos Horst, Lisa and Mike Jamison, Jessica Janney, Alice Johnson, Richard Judy, Ruthlene Judy, Marsha Keller, Kim Kline, Tracie Knight, Laura Kropp, the Terry Kuykendall family, Melissa Lambert, O’Dell Lambert, Robert Lambert, Ronnie Lambert, Rex Landis, Roger and Skip Mallow, Yvonne Marsh, Ed May, Gene and Joan McConnell, Gary McDonald, Neil McLaughlin, Rose Miller, Bruce Minor, Barbara Moats, Gloria Moats, John Morford, Bill Mullenax, Helen Nash, Aaron Nelson, Ruth Nelson, Cheryl Paine, the Julia Pennington family, the Marie Pitsenbarger family, Andy Pond, Janice Propst, Eldon “Butch” Puffenbarger, Alda Propst, Janis Propst, Mike Propst, Sheldon Propst, Tom Rader, Brandon Reel, Jason Rexrode, Linda Fay Rexrode, Dennis Riggleman, Mike Roberts, Donna Ruddle, Jenny Ruddle, Mary Sawyers, Brittany Shriver, Annie Simmons, Erin Simmons, Eva Simmons, Greg Simmons, Judy Simmons, Nelson Simmons, Robbie Sites, Mike Skiles, Tina Stuben, Steve Stump, Linda and Larry Vandevander, Sandra Vandevander, Amy Vaus, Judy Waggy, Estelle Wagner, Mary Louise Waldschlager, Rene White, Sherry Wilfong, Judy Williams, Ann and Ed Wimer, individuals and families affected by the natural disasters and the people of Ukraine, Israel, and Palestine.
