Opinion

As my children are moving from elementary school into middle and high school, I’m learning so many new things, like that “gucci’” is a good thing and has nothing to do with the clothing brand, deodorant is a hot commodity, and I can manipulate them into just about any chore by threatening to take away their cell phones.

One by one, a generation of Barry County leaders has been exiting from courthouse offices over the last few years, punctuated last week again with the retirement of Presiding Commissioner Gary Youngblood.

For those interested in history and genealogy, Missouri Digital Heritage is a great resource. Located on the Missouri Secretary of State’s website, Missouri Digital Heritage contains access to collections from institutions across the state.

Ready or not, in just a few more days we’ll drop into 2023 and begin another year, come what may! There are many unknowns that will fall before us during the next 12 months. Hopefully there are some that occurred during the previous year that won’t be happening again.

Over the past month, I have watched game after game of men my age or (mostly) younger playing their hearts out in pursuit of the planet’s most coveted sports trophy, the World Cup. On Sunday, 35-yearold Lionel Messi cemented his legacy as one of the greatest players of all time by leading his mixedage Argentina squad to a 4-3 victory in a shootout against France, led by its 24-year-old phenom Kylian Mbappe, who won his first World Cup in 2018.

There are many ways to express one’s feelings and tie into the meaning of Christmas, but none better than a column that appeared in a Chicago newspaper many years ago. The simple words, if taken seriously today, could go a long way toward solving problems both domestic and abroad.

As I approach my 60th birthday, I get that question off and on. My answer is: “I’m not.” I have no plans to retire.

It was about this time nine years ago I first drove through the city of Cassville. On my way to Monett to meet my old boss, who was trying to sweet talk me up here from Searcy, Ark., I came up 86 through some of the windiest roads I had ever driven, then took 76 over to hilltop.

This is a repeat of a column published in 2013 that depicts a special time in our lives. Reading it this time of the year has become a habit for me and I think if she could see, Anita Sue would also like the memory.

It is a wonderful time to talk about some of the moments that brought me and my family where they are today. To tell this story, I need to start in the summer of 2018.