Opinion

I’ve never wanted to be Simon Cowell. Yet, on Saturday, I found myself in a chair at a judges table, doing my best to channel his biggest talent to judge the 10 acts set to perform in the inaugural Ozarks Got Talent show.

How many of you have heard the saying “Sticks and stones may break my bones but your words will never hurt me?” Trust me, we all have, yet we all have been faced with with those hurtful words thrown at us no matter who we are — based on race, age, wealth, addiction, beliefs and so on. With the Barry and Lawrence County Narcan Outreach, I recently spoke on stigma at two local events.

It’s that time of the year that has different meanings and significance for various groups. Yes, it’s back-to-school time.

Happy belated birthday to the oldest man in Wheaton, Mr. Floyd Hughes, who turned 100 on July 19. Floyd was gracious enough to invite me into his home to talk to him before his community bike ride, even letting me pull him away from that night’s episode of Wheel of Fortune! The ride was not set to begin until 7 p.m., but that didn’t stop Floyd from sitting on his bike in the final 10 minutes, revving up and ready to go. At 100 now, the great-great-grandpa took his time to enjoy the moment, clocking in at about 1.23 miles per hour as he passed the train depot on Main.

Gatekeeping news in small communities and as a public figure is a heavy weight, and this week it was mine to bear. A story in today’s edition describes an incident occurring in the Barry County jail on April 1, 2022, involving a deputy and an inmate.

When I was a little girl, one of my favorite activities was to explore the public library in my hometown of Pierce City. At that time, the library was housed in an old church, and in the back was a long display case with artifacts from Harold Bell Wright, the namesake of the church, and the early days of Pierce City.

Everyone has a physical birthday; a day in which one celebrates their physical birth. When one becomes a Christian, they have a spiritual birthday.

I have never considered myself a history buff, but for a few hours on June 7, my wife, daughter and I sent ourselves on a wild goose chase to learn every single thing we could about Lot 114 in the city of Cassville.

As I write this, the temperature outside is climbing to the expected 98 degrees for the day. We have experienced a heat wave these last couple of weeks that has broken records all over the country.