Methow

This Thanksgiving week, we may be comfortably full of gratitude platitudes. Let us balance the sweetness with a bit of savory Festivus and the annual “Airing of Grievances.” Grab a pole. Any pole will do. This year I am grabbing a poll instead of a pole. This year, my annual grievance list is all about […]

A friend sent a recent article by Shannon Huffman Polson, “The Briefing: Our unmaking… and how to stop it.” In the message with the link, my friend asks, “what are you reading now?” A beautiful conversation starter indeed. She also off-handedly mentioned she made squash apple soup for dinner that night. Everyone needs a friend […]

The forest smells uplifting in every season, but the scent of autumn compels one to inhale deep breaths that fill the lungs … all the way down to the belly button. An autumn walk in the woods treats all the senses: a late sun glistening through golden foliage, a light breeze rustling dry flora, the […]

What a weekend, am I right? The weather, the sun, the colors — the community events! The Methow Descendants gathered to celebrate the salmon return with a talk at The Barn on Friday, and a community celebration at Homestream Park on Sunday. Beth Harrington, creator of the “Our Mr. Matsura” documentary film, happened to be […]

I wish I could clone myself, because there are a myriad of interesting events happening on the weekend of Sept. 20, least of all me playing “September” by Earth, Wind & Fire on repeat. It’s a family tradition. If you missed the “Our Mr. Matsura” documentary by Beth Harrington, it’s back! The Omak Theatre will […]

It is my exquisite pleasure to write just two Lower Valley columns a month. I’m struggling to write a column this week. Not for lack of content — it’s time that is my ankle bracelet. Like most everyone else in the valley, I attend a main job, a side job, and this one wonderful life. […]

Above my desk is a shelf of poetry books, including “Plume,” by the 2012-2014 Poet Laureate of Washington, Kathleen Flenniken. Kathleen visited the Methow during her time as Poet Laureate and read from her collection that grew out of her time living near Hanford. I was mesmerized by “Plume,” and in particular the poem entitled, […]

In the shaded courtyard of the Methow Store, birds fed their babies in nest above, and a robin swooped low. Shayne Naudi and Allen Giernet spoke of the achievements over the last year, gratitude for the community, challenges, and finding time to restore one’s own spirit. As an artist and landscape designer, Shayne dreamed about […]

On Friday, my Uncle Carl quietly slipped from this world into the next. In the following days my experiences were viewed through a fog of his words. He often said, “Our job is to be present,” and, “most people spend their lives as human beings, but you are a human doer.” He often recited long […]

“How did we get roped into this?” Elaine Timentwa Emerson wondered. “You stopped and talked to the U.S. Forest Service,” Cyndy Miller reminded her. “Oh yes, I remember, they were cutting the trees,” Elaine recalled. And that is how it started. In May, Elaine spotted Forest Service employees thinning trees where she and generations of […]