Hill-Topics
If all goes according to plan and the cyber-gremlins are kept at bay, this will be the first Hill-Topics I've written while riding in the passenger seat of a car.
At the time of this writing, I'm traveling between Hillsboro and Fort Scott, typing on a battery-powered laptop computer. The world outside the car windows blurs my peripheral vision, making it difficult to concentrate on the screen.
According to dashboard clock, it's 7:23 p.m. Friday, and my wife and I are on our way to our house in Fort Scott to load our possessions in a rental truck and bring them back to Hillsboro.
I doubt if Jack Kerouac himself ever imagined it would someday be possible to make an "on the road" journal entry like this one. But here we are, On the Road with The Star-Journal.
*****
Being in the kindergarten classroom on the first day of school was a great experience for me as a reporter-photographer.
Special thanks to Tracy Boldt for inviting me to be there, and for the parents who shared their thoughts for the article, which begins on page one of this newspaper.
*****
Thanks to Hillsboro High School football coach Len Coryea for giving me on-the-field access to photograph practice last week, and for the heads-up when the plays were coming my direction, so I could get out of the way.
Being that close, many things impressed me about the Trojans' football program: The relationship between the coaches and players is positive, not demeaning. The language is fun, not foul. And the enthusiasm is contagious.
There are some big players on the team, and they're being taught the fundamentals college coaches look for, such as the proper way to shed blocks and make tackles.
Another thing that impressed me was Coach Coryea telling his players there was no limit on the amount of water they could drink; and if they got too hot, to take off their helmets.
If you played football back in the no-water days, you understand how much progress there's been in the safe and humane treatment of high school players.
*****
With school in full swing, we're going to need your help keeping up with all that's going on. Already we're seeing press releases and courtesy photos.
Please keep us informed about what's going on, and we'll do our best, space permitting, to get it in the paper.
While we're on the subject, we're looking for correspondents to help us cover sports teams and activity groups. As a staff of one, it's impossible for me to cover everything. So if you or someone you know is an avid follower of a school activity and would be interested in learning more about what being a "deputy reporter" would entail, please give me a call at 947-3975.
Part of my vision for publishing a newspaper worthy of this town, is to have as many people as possible contributing and "taking ownership" of the contents of these pages.
*****
Well, it's 8:19 p.m. and we're driving east through the Flint Hills between El Dorado and Eureka on U.S. -54, which has to be one of the most beautiful drives anywhere.
Recent rains have deepened the greens of the grass and the trees, and the sounds of cicadas in the roadside trees remind me that the sights and sounds of summer soon will be at and end.
As someone who prefers Indian summer to summer-summer, I say, "Amen!"
*****
Thanks to the Hillsboro Senior Center for inviting me to speak at the luncheon gathering this past week. The home-cooked dishes were as great as your hospitality. If I hadn't been on my best behavior because it was my first visit, I would've gone back for seconds of everything.
My generation doesn't have the same appreciation for get-togethers as golden-agers. Thanks for inviting me to share with you, and for making me feel at home.
*****
Happy 60th anniversary to Frank and Marie Wiens, who tied a very secure knot back on Aug. 29, 1946.
The Wiens are loyal subscribers to the Star-Journal, and Frank gave me a call last week, to find out if I knew what day Labor Day would be observed. (It's Sept. 4).
Frank told me he needed to know because he and Marie were married on Labor Day weekend and that's when they like to celebrate.
But then, every new day is a celebration for the Wiens. He's 93 and she's 85 and they're still going strong, he said.
As we talked, I learned Frank and Marie were born outside of the United States.
Frank was born in India to missionary parents in 1913. The Mennonite Brethren Church of Siberia had sent them there, he said. One year later, they moved to Los Angeles.
Marie was born in Siberia. Her family escaped Communism by taking a dangerous train ride to China, where they lived for a year before receiving permission to immigrate, to southern California.
Frank was sweet on Marie and when she said she was going to Tabor College, he knew he had to follow her.
"I knew that there were fellows out here who would try to marry her," he said, "so I proposed to her and we got married."
The Wiens have four children, 10 grand children and five great-grandchildren. Frank hopes to see many family members on their big day.
"We praise the Lord every day," he said. "At our age we're so happy to be Christians that we pray the Lord might take us home anytime."
*****
Due to an editor's error (that would be me, and mine), there was a mistake in last week's article about giving the earthly remains of Native Americans a proper burial.
In the rush of deadline, I re-wrote that the "First Mennonite Brethren Church" was participating in the Return to the Earth project.
Of course, anyone who's been in Hillsboro a minute and a half longer than myself knows there's no church with that name in town.
I should've written that the First Mennonite Church is participating in the project. I thank our most able and gracious correspondent, Paul Jantzen, for gently setting me straight.
"I thought it might be confusing to some people," Jantzen said.
I'm still learning the names and distinctions of Mennonite churches in Hillsboro, which is no excuse for the mistake. Thanks for your forbearance and forgiveness.
— GRANT OVERSTAKE
