A display window at Keepers Antiques along Central Avenue in Faribault. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo February 2024)
PHOTOGRAPHING SCENES behind glass often proves challenging. First, you need to watch for your own reflection so as not to photograph yourself. And then there are all the other reflections playing upon the glass.
I faced those obstacles while photographing a valentine themed window display with my cellphone outside Keepers Antiques in historic downtown Faribault recently. I tried my best, waiting for vehicles to pass, angling myself out of the photo, working to frame the scene. Yet, even with all that finagling, the results were not outstanding. Or so I thought.
When I viewed the images on my computer, I was pleasantly surprised to notice unseen details in the overall window display image. That prompted thoughts of the popular “I Spy” photo-based picture books for kids. Readers need to find specific items in each photographed scene.
With historic buildings across the street reflecting in the antique shop window, it appears that two faces are peering from second floor windows on the far left and to the right. Love that ghostly visual. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo February 2024)
In the collage of antiques and collectibles Nona Boyes creatively placed in the window of her antique shop, I saw the makings of an “I Spy” book. (Study the first image in this post.) I spy a doll in a checked dress. I spy a red telephone. I spy a stop sign. I spy faces in windows. I spy a red ironing board. I spy a chandelier. I spy two candy boxes. I spy a valentine in a shoe. I spy a fleur de lis, the symbol of my community. What do you spy?
Shirley Temple dolls times three. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo February 2024)
What you won’t spy in the overview window display are three 1970s vintage Shirley Temple Ideal dolls. They were there, just not in the section I initially framed. I photographed them separately. In the doll portraits, I spy a red brooch. Do you? I spy, too, one white shoe with a red bow. I spy the word “beverages.”
Those I spy candy boxes. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo February 2024)
And I spy in the all of this an opportunity to turn a photo challenge into something interesting as only a photographer and writer can do. Through my creative lens, I saw pages in an “I Spy” book unfolding before me.
The traditional valentine bouquet, red roses. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
AHEAD OF US ON THE SIDEWALK, two young men, both on rollerblades, paused. As Randy and I drew nearer, I noticed one holding a bundle of wrapped flowers. I couldn’t help myself. “Oh, for me! Thank you!” I exclaimed, stretching my arms as if to take the bouquet. They laughed.
It was one of those chance encounters that proved delightfully fitting on the Sunday before Valentine’s Day. Randy and I were out for an afternoon walk on the campus of the Minnesota State Academy for the Deaf when we met the teens. The state campus is often used as a pathway by students from Shattuck-St. Mary’s, a private college prep school in Faribault. MSAD sits between Shattuck’s upper and lower campuses.
Given their rollerblades, I figured the two were hockey players at Shattuck. They confirmed that. And they confirmed that the flowers were for a girlfriend. “He’s in love,” the Minnesotan said of his Canadian roommate. I smiled, happy to witness this gentle ribbing, this evidence of young love. Oh, to be sixteen again and feeling madly in love.
Another valentine tradition, assorted chocolates in a heart-shaped box. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
Love. While we romanticize love on Valentine’s Day with flowers and chocolate and cards and dinner out, it is so much more than romanticism. Ask anyone who’s older and who has been in a relationship for awhile. Like me. Love is listening and caring and kindness and simply being there in the quiet of each other’s company. It’s supporting one another through challenging days and celebrating together in the good times. Or simply enjoying the ordinary days, which comprise the bulk of life.
And love in February is two 16-year-old hockey players skating along the sidewalk, one cradling wrapped flowers for a girl.
I received this handcrafted valentine in the mail from my friend Beth Ann. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo February 2024)
I adore this valentine crafted by Jack, Amelia and Ben and mailed to me from northwestern Minnesota. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo February 2024)
Valentine chalk heart in the window of Keeper’s Antiques in downtown Faribault. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo February 2024)
Valentine love, for me, is also handmade valentines in the mail, vintage valentines from my mom’s collection and window displays themed to February 14. It is childhood memories of shoeboxes crafted into valentine receptacles, boxes of candy conversation hearts and Juicy Fruit gum taped to red hearts. It is my 5-year-old grandson’s homemade paper valentine heart stuck to the front of my fridge.
My son crafted this cloth valentine 25 years ago in kindergarten. I hang it on my door every Valentine’s Day. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
Valentine’s Day brings loving thoughts of family (including my husband of nearly 42 years) and friends. February 14 is truly a day that stretches beyond romantic love. I sincerely hope individuals who are not in romantic relationships feel included. Love is universal. Love hugs all of humanity.
One of my favorite valentines, because of its theme, among my mom’s vintage valentines. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo February 2024)
I love the vibe of Valentine’s Day, a day when our thoughts focus on a world full of love in a world too often filled with hatred. On this singular day, we can intentionally choose to exude positivity. We can choose to forgive and focus on that which connects, rather than divides, us. We can choose to listen and encourage and use only generously kind words. We can choose to skate along the sidewalk like 16-year-olds intent on delivering bouquets of happiness. And we can choose, too, to stop, stretch our arms toward those flowers and engage in conversation with individuals we meet in the everyday moments of life. We will all be the richer for having connected, for showing love to one another on Valentine’s Day and well beyond February 14.
A flag ceremony, representing the country of origins of many peoples who call Faribault home, was part of the 2015 International Festival Faribault. Joseph Mbele is shown just to the right of center in this photo, dressed in black with a yellow and red shirt. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo August 2015)
I FIRST MET JOSEPH L. MBELE in 2015 at the International Festival Faribault. The author, cultural consultant and professor of English at St. Olaf College in Northfield was representing his native Tanzania during this fest celebrating the cultural diversity of my community. Then late last year I talked to Mbele again, when he was selling his latest book, Chickens in the Bus: More Thoughts on Cultural Differences, at a local holiday church bazaar. He is engaging, soft-spoken, knowledgeable and just an overall kind and gentle soul.
Author Joseph L. Mbele with two of his three books, photographed at the 2015 International Festival Faribault. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo August 2015)
This image shows the cultural diversity of Faribault. This photo was taken at a downtown car showin 2015. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo July 2015)
That he is appearing at a business along Faribault’s Central Avenue is meaningful in itself. Many Somali residents live in second floor apartments here in the heart of our downtown business district. Other of our newest immigrants have opened restaurants and shops along the avenue and side streets, making for a diverse downtown. But it was their presence here that stirred up complaints and controversy a few years back, and likely still does, although those are not as loudly vocalized as previously.
Mbele’s latest book, published in 2021. (Cover image sourced online)
In Chickens in the Bus, Mbele terms this “the sidewalk issue.” Business owners expressed concerns about Somali men congregating outside, blocking sidewalks, scaring customers away, Mbele writes. His words are not new to me. I’d heard them, too, from business owners and from local residents. People were, they said, afraid to come downtown. I’ve never feared walking along Central Avenue past groups of Somali men. What people don’t understand, they all too often fear.
To Mbele’s credit, he has worked hard to inform, to enlighten, to listen, to help bridge cultural divides. He spoke to Faribault business owners. He spoke to members of the Somali community. He’s also spoken publicly at libraries and elsewhere. I appreciate his efforts.
At the core of “the sidewalk issue” are cultural differences, according to this native Tanzanian who specializes in teaching folklore at Northfield’s St. Olaf College. Somalians come from an oral culture, one that relies on social gatherings to share news, Mbele writes. “…Somali gatherings in downtown Faribault are the Somali newsstands,” he told local business owners and includes in his book. That’s so down-to-earth understandable.
Mbele’s slim volume, Chickens in the Bus, which I purchased at the November 2023 holiday market, is an excellent primer for anyone desiring to learn more about cultural differences. This author and cultural consultant highlights how those differences can both challenge communities, but also present opportunities in an ever-increasingly connected world that is decidedly global. He writes in a way that is peaceful and soothing and seeks to create harmony.
A rooster, photographed at a rural Faribault farm and used here for illustration only. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo May 2018)
I learned a lot about “African Time” and “American Time,” about native-born Africans who do not view themselves as black or as “people of colour” (vs African Americans who do), about chickens in the bus, and much more. In Africa, Mbele writes, someone may carry a chicken onto a bus, a gift from a rural villager.
His newest book, a sequel to Africans and Americans: Embracing Cultural Differences, proved an easy and informative read, one that enlightened me about my newest neighbors. They enrich Faribault with their culture, bringing their food, language, dress, customs and more. I will never travel to Africa. So I am the richer for the Africans who now call southern Minnesota home, who bring their culture into my community, to me.
The frosted cover of Monopoly House Divided, left on a table in Central Park. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo November 2023)
NOW THAT CAUCUSES and primaries have kicked off, this seems a fitting time to share photos I took a few months back at Faribault’s Central Park. But first the back story. Randy and I sometimes walk in and around this block square park and into adjacent neighborhoods for exercise. Occasionally while crossing through Central Park, I’ve noticed miscellaneous items left there, like abandoned boxes of food, articles of clothing, even Play Doh slime. I would pull out my smartphone and document my finds.
I have no idea why this game was left on a picnic table or by whom. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo November 2023)
On the frosty morning I spotted play money scattered across the grass and a board game atop a picnic table, I took extra time to investigate. I found a political version of Monopoly, Hasbro’s House Divided. Who knew? But I suppose given the political scene in this country, the constant bickering between parties, this should not have been a surprise. Let the board game company make money on the division within our nation.
The board game was lying open on the table as if the players abandoned it mid-play. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo November 2023)
The game features “Executive Power” and “I Voted” cards and rules that allow players to buy states, earn votes and collect rent while on the campaign trail to the White House. That’s a simplified summary.
That’s the White House in the front. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo November 2023)
Now, I loved Monopoly as a child. Randy played the game with our kids, often sprawling across the living room floor on Sunday afternoons. By that time I had no interest in the game. And I have no interest in playing House Divided Monopoly. There’s enough division and chaos in the real world of politics to focus on it in a competitive board game.
Playing pieces on the frosted board game cover. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo November 2023)
I’m already weary of the current presidential campaign, and it’s only just begun. How many months until the election?
TELL ME: Have you played this version of Monopoly? If yes, what are your thoughts on the game?
#
NOTE: I don’t want the comments section to turn into a space for heated political debate and discussion. That is not my intention. As always, I reserve the right on this, my personal blog, to publish or not publish comments.
Raspberry chicken salad, one of the best salads I’ve eaten, at the Amboy Cottage Cafe, Amboy, Minnesota. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
FOR MANY OF US, these early January days prompt thoughts of embracing a healthier lifestyle. Eating better, exercising, losing weight, reducing stress and more top lists. But taking this from ideas to action requires determination and hard work.
If you live in a cold weather climate like me, getting motivated and active during the winter can prove challenging. Just the thought of bundling up to go outdoors makes me wish for warmer, sunnier days. This time of year, I’d rather snuggle under a fleece throw and read.
These as yet unused grippers will go over my snow boots to keep me safe on snowy and icy surfaces. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo January 2024)
But I’m determined in 2024 to work harder at appreciating winter. I won’t be taking up downhill skiing or ice skating. But I am open to trying cross country skiing and snowshoeing decades out from my last attempt at either. I’ll leave ice fishing for the die-hard anglers. And I can certainly walk/hike, especially now that I have clamp-on Snow Trax with tungsten carbide spikes for gripping snowy and icy surfaces. I have not yet tested them to see if they actually work as promised. We’ve had only minimal snow and ice. Of one thing I’m certain. I can’t risk falling and breaking a bone. Not at my age, which is closing in on 70.
Inside the Shattuck-St. Mary’s soccer dome. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo December 2023)
If I really want to play it safe and simultaneously stay warm, I can walk indoors. Shattuck-St. Mary’s, a private college prep school on Faribault’s east side, opens its dome to the public from 6:10 – 9:30 am weekdays for running and walking. Five loops around the soccer field perimeter equal about a mile, the distance Randy and I typically walk. It’s truly amazing that I can go this far given six months ago I could barely manage to walk a block due to the affects of long haul COVID.
The curving Straight River as photographed from the Straight River Trail, Faribault. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo February 2023)
On days when temps are not horribly cold and the wind is calm, I much prefer walking outside. There’s something about being outdoors, in nature, that is more relaxing, calming than in an indoor environment. I like the feel of sunshine on my face, even the crisp air, and the sight of twisting river and bare trees and a sometimes bold, blue sky. Last time walking at the Minnesota State Academy for the Deaf campus, 10 deer stood statue still watching Randy and me as we stood statue still watching them. I felt such joy in seeing this wildlife in the heart of my community.
Pre-long haul COVID, I was lifting 12-pound weights. I’ve resumed lifting weights, but not 12 pounds yet. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo January 2024)
Walking and weight lifting, along with taking Vitamin D and getting sufficient calcium in my diet, are ways I am improving my health, too, specifically my bone health. Dairy has always been an important part of my daily food in-take given I grew up on a dairy farm. I like lifting hand weights. I feel empowered and stronger. With a family history of osteoporosis, my own diagnosis, two past broken bones and my tall, thin frame, I take bone health seriously.
Then there’s diet beyond dairy. If one good thing came from developing long haul COVID in 2023, it was losing 25 pounds. Granted, I wouldn’t recommend this weight loss plan. But I’m happy to have a current body mass index of 20.7, which is on the lower end of my “normal” weight range.
Oatmeal laced with fruit is my typical breakfast. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo 2014)
I find I no longer crave sweets as much as I once did. With the kids long gone from home, I seldom bake. I eat a bowl of old-fashioned oatmeal with fresh fruit added nearly every morning and have done so for many years. It took several weeks of eating oatmeal for the grain to grow on me. In the back of my head, I remembered how much my father-in-law disliked oatmeal, so much so that he stuffed oatmeal into his pockets at Catholic boarding school. Not quite sure how he managed that as a young lad under the watchful eyes of the nuns.
Flamin’ Bleupizza from Pizzeria 201 in Montgomery, Minnesota. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
I try to eat smaller portions, avoid junk food and bread, and eat plenty of fruits and vegetables (which I love). Admittedly, I also love pizza, a grilled cheese sandwich, cheesecake, ice cream, etc. and don’t deny myself foods that aren’t necessarily “good” for me. It’s about portion control. Have a small scoop of ice cream, not several. On occasion, I’ve been known to devour a handful of dark chocolate chips when I’m craving chocolate.
Seldom do I dine out, for two reasons—cost and my inability to tolerate noisy environments due to sensory issues from long haul COVID. I’ve only eaten out a handful of times in the past year. Twice I left because I couldn’t manage the noise. While I appreciate restaurants, I recognize that such dining can lead to overeating and consuming calorie-laden foods because, who isn’t tempted by French fries?
Walking is one way to reduce stress. Many communities have trails, perfect for walking even in the winter. This photo was taken along the Straight River Trail near Fleckenstein Bluffs Park in Faribault. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo February 2023)
Reducing stress is perhaps my biggest challenge. I tend to worry, to ruminate. And that is unhealthy. I’m getting better at letting go, at lessening demands on myself, on understanding that life never has been, and never will be, perfect.
#
TELL ME: What do you do to stay healthy? What goals have you set for 2024?
Vintage Holy Family. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo December 2023)
AS A WOMAN OF FAITH, the true meaning of Christmas rests for me in the birth of Jesus. Certainly, I appreciate and celebrate the secular aspects, too. But, above all, my focus centers on the Christ Child born in Bethlehem.
In early December, I joined a group of volunteers who were decorating my church, Trinity Lutheran in Faribault, for Advent. This was my first year participating as I don’t particularly enjoy putting up decorations. But I decided I could at least follow directions and do whatever I was told.
Turns out I rather enjoyed several hours of working with my faith family to hang greens and other festive decorations. My only stipulation—I wouldn’t climb a ladder.
When the guys climbed a ladder, pulling a vintage plastic Nativity set from a storage space, my new friend Nancy told me she’d been tasked with disposing of the scene (she planned to donate it to a downtown secondhand shop). I protested. Loudly. I wanted the Holy Family to stay at Trinity. And displayed.
I scanned the narthex for a spot, my eyes landing on a corner bookshelf. Perfect. I ran my idea past Leann, who was all in. She rolled the bookshelf to another space. And then several of us unboxed the trio of mother, father and child, actually two children. Another Nancy and I chose the darker-skinned baby with hands that appeared more life-like than the other plastic Jesus. And then Nancy tossed the rejected baby back in the box. Tossed. I protested loudly. In fun, of course. She picked up the second Jesus and laid him gently in the box.
Then I stepped into the cool December Saturday morning to shake dirt from the plain brown swatch of fabric found with the baby. Perfect, we all thought. Just like back in Bethlehem days—a basic, simple wrap to warm the new baby born in a barn.
The scene, though, was still missing something. A star, suggested Leann, who promised to bring one from home. Perfect.
Sunday morning I arrived for worship services to see the scene completed with a glowing star set upon a table and “The Christmas Story” children’s picture books artfully displayed on a round table for kids to borrow. The table represented the stable in Bethlehem. Marilyn’s idea. It worked.
Baby Jesus, though, was no longer wrapped in the basic brown cloth. Rather, he was snugged in a green and white quilt of stripes and circles stitched and tied by the Trinity Quilt Makers. Not exactly period authentic, but it would have to do. I was not in charge of decorating.
After church services, as I visited with friends, I observed a preschooler walk up to the Nativity set and take in the scene before him. My heart, my spirit, my soul filled with joy. This was exactly why I wanted Mary, Joseph and the Christ Child to remain at Trinity. I knew kids would be drawn to the corner scene of lighted figurines, to view the plastic Jesus so carefully laid in the manger under the watchful eyes of his loving parents.
A delivery truck for Cry Baby Craig’s hot sauce, parked behind the business in downtown Faribault. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo 2021)
WITH ONLY DAYS until Christmas, hostess and other last-minute gifts purchased locally are great options. I’m most familiar, of course, with what can be found in Faribault. But I have a few ideas from neighboring communities also.
Faribault Mill blankets/throws artfully hung on a simple pipe in the factory store. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
First up, Faribault. We are nationally and internationally-known for the Faribault Mill, previously the Faribault Woolen Mill. The mill’s high-quality woolen blankets and throws are its signature products sold at its factory store, in several Twin Cities metro locations, online and elsewhere. I have several of these high-end blankets gifted to me through the years. They’re not inexpensive. Selections range from traditional patterns to Peanuts designs (which I hear are incredibly popular with Gen Z; especially Snoopy) to the artwork of Adam Turman. His art is more Minnesota centric with loons, Up North outdoors scenes and nature themes on mill throws.
Award-winning Amablu Gorgonzola from Caves of Faribault. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
Handcrafted cheeses aged in sandstone caves along the Straight River in Faribault are a tasty gift for anyone who appreciates blue, Gouda, Gorgonzola and Swiss cheeses. These are award-winning cheeses. I always have a Caves of Faribault cheese in my refrigerator. This is top-notch cheese available locally at HyVee Grocery and in many other retail locations in Minnesota and across the country. Other local artisan cheese makers include Shepherd’s Way Farms, rural Nerstrand, and Cannon Belles Cheese, Cannon Falls.
The original Cry Baby Craig’s hot sauce. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
Also wildly popular in the food category is Cry Baby Craig’s gourmet hot sauce, made in the heart of historic downtown Faribault. It’s gained a following in the metro and beyond. My son-in-law from Wisconsin loves this sauce crafted with ingredients sourced from area farms. As with Faribault-made blue cheese, there’s always a bottle of CBC in my fridge. It’s available for pick-up right at the Central Avenue location and elsewhere. I just picked up three bottles of three different sauces the other day.
Cry Baby Craig’s recently partnered with 10,000 Drops Craft Distillers a block away to craft Lokal Vodka infused with pickled pepper brine and CBC hot sauce. The distillery also creates plain vodka and key lime, blood orange and meyer lemon Lokal Vodka. So if someone on your gift list appreciates vodka and you want to support local, head to 10,000 Drops. Loon Liquors Distillery in neighboring Northfield also does vodka and other hard liquors.
Minnesota wines, including from Vintage Escapes Winery just to the west of Faribault in rural Kilkenny, would be a good hostess gift. Or coffee, roasted at Mighty Fine! Coffee, next to the distillery in Faribault.
This may seem like an odd gift, but handcrafted European style butter from Hope Creamery in small town Hope (south of Faribault along Interstate 35) is something I’ve always wanted to try and which I think would be an excellent gift for anyone who loves to bake. It’s sold in Hope and also at select grocery stores (including at Fareway and HyVee in Faribault) inside and outside the metro.
Craig Kotasek’s print of Minnesota-based Jolly Green Giant brand peas.(Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
For the art appreciator, I recommend the letterpress art of Craig Kotasek of Tin Can Valley Printing. He uses old school letterpress to create prints, greeting cards and more. I’m perhaps a bit biased given Craig worked at the same weekly newspaper, The Gaylord Hub, where I worked as a reporter and photographer right out of college. Craig worked on the printing side, many years after me. His art is sold at select locations in and around his Le Sueur business base.
Two rural-themed books featuring the work of Minnesota writers and purchased at Books on Central. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo December 2023)
I love books. And our area has some great independent bookstores to buy books for the book lover on your list. Content Bookstore in Northfield. Little Professor Book Center in Owatonna. And, new to Faribault, Books on Central, a volunteer-run used bookstore owned by, and benefiting, the Rice County Area United Way. Housed in a former jewelry store, this bookshop features a central vintage chandelier, built-in shelves and drawers, and friendly, helpful staff. It’s a stunning, cozy space with a remarkable, high-quality selection of used books at reasonable prices. Yes, I’ve already purchased several books here, nearly all Minnesota centric.
My writing has published in these volumes of The Talking Stick, the 2023 volume 32 not included in this stack. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
Which brings me to my last suggestion. The Talking Stick, an anthology published by the Jackpine Writers’ Bloc, features a collection of fiction, creative nonfiction and poetry by Minnesotans or those with a strong connection to Minnesota. Any of the anthologies would make an excellent gift for the book lover on your list. And, yes, I have writing in the latest edition of TS and many years prior. The anthology can be ordered online.
That’s it, my ideas for gifts that are mostly from my region. Happy last-minute shopping Minnesota style.
The Rice County government services building, Faribault. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo December 2023)
LIGHTS IN HOLIDAY HUES rim the Rice County government services building along busy Minnesota State Highway 60/Fourth Street in Faribault adding a festive flair to the city-scape.
I love this, these unexpected jolts of color brightening the darkening sky of late afternoon, the darkness of nightfall in December. Minnesota winters get long and dreary and dark and any extra light lifts my spirits.
Soon days will lengthen following the winter solstice on December 21. For that I feel grateful. Even if January brings cold and snow, followed by more cold and snow, I can see the light of spring in lengthening days.
Johnston Hall, date unknown. (Photo courtesy of Rice County Historical Society)
IN EARLY NOVEMBER, I watched a local documentary online about Johnston Hall in the comfort of my home office. The film, “Love Inwrought: Johnston Hall and the Memory of a Building,” was created by Sam Temple and Logan Ledman. The ambitious and talented young filmmakers have, since their high school days, focused on local history through their 1855 History Team (Steamboat Media Co.). Their latest project focuses on Johnston Hall, completed in 1888 as part of Seabury Divinity School. The building was demolished in 2021 after standing on Faribault’s east side for 133 years.
Sam Temple, left to right, Logan Ledman and Troy Temple. (Photo courtesy of 1855 History Team)
This Saturday, December 16, the duo will present a public screening of their film at the Rice County Historical Society in Faribault from 5:30-6:30 pm. And while I am not able to be there, I encourage anyone interested in Johnston Hall and the fine work of writers and directors Temple and Ledman to attend.
A Q & A follows the screening. Attendees are encouraged to share their stories about Johnston Hall, which saw many uses through the years.
Johnston Hall model. (Photo courtesy of 1855 History Team)
But that’s not all. A model of the building handcrafted by Rathbun Reliquilaries plus artifacts and architectural items saved by the historical society will also be available for viewing.
Saturday’s event offers an ideal opportunity to learn more about Johnston Hall and to meet members of the team that worked diligently to create the documentary. Besides Temple and Ledman those include Troy Temple, illustrator Piper Mohring, composer Sam Dwyer, and actors Steve Searl (portraying Bishop Henry Whipple) and Eli Hastings (as the Rev. Henry St. Clair).
Documentary promo. (Courtesy of 1855 History Team)
According to Sam Temple, the title of the documentary traces to a quote by Bishop Whipple: “There is an unwritten history of faith and love inwrought in every building erected here.” The Episcopalian bishop was referencing buildings (including Johnston Hall) at the schools he helped organize.
This signage stands at Johnston Hall Memorial Garden across the street from the local hospital and clinic. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo August 2023)
The work of Temple, Ledman and their team is top-notch professional, outstanding and deserving of accolades. These young men are passionate about history, storytelling, filmmaking and creating an appreciation for our past. Their enthusiasm and work impress me. I can’t wait to see what they do next.
The Kletscher family Christmas tree always sat on the end of the kitchen table, as shown in this December 1964 photo. That’s me in the red jumper with four of my five siblings.
TO BE OR NOT TO BE is not the question. Rather, the question is this: Real or artificial? Do you prefer a real Christmas tree or an artificial one?
There’s no right or wrong answer here. Rather tree choice is a matter of personal preference. But I am unequivocally a real Christmas tree kind of woman.
Given my farm background, my strong connection to the land, my love of simple and natural, I have always selected a real tree. Even when I lived in a college dorm and my own apartment, I had real trees. The dorm tree was a small potted Norfolk Island Pine, gifted to me by my Secret Angel, Elise, during my freshman year at Bethany Lutheran College in Mankato.
Our Christmas tree this year. I always hang tinsel on our tree. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo December 2023)
My preference for real Christmas trees, though, traces back to my childhood. Each December our family trekked to the local grocery store—back in the days when Vesta had a corner store and a whole block of businesses—to peruse the trees leaning against the exterior storefront. I don’t recall details, only that our tree was small, short and short-needled, intentionally so.
I lived in a tiny 1 ½ story farmhouse during the first 11 years of my life. An oil-burning stove and several pieces of furniture filled the living room, leaving no space for a Christmas tree. Our tree sat on the end of the Formica kitchen table, next to the west-facing drafty window. Remembering it from an adult perspective, that tree had to be really small. But I loved the imperfect Charlie Brown tree. Everything from the colorful bulb lights to the ornaments to the tinsel draping the boughs delighted me.
Randy stands outside the garage with our tree, purchased at Ken’s Christmas Trees. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo December 2023)
Today that childhood nostalgia deeply influences my tree choice. I prefer imperfect and smallish to anything sculpted or over-sized. Seven foot ceilings also limit the height of our tree.
When my kids were little, our friends Joy and Steve invited us to their rural property to cut down a pine tree from among those they intentionally planted for Christmas trees. I hold fond memories of our young family weaving among the trees to find just the right one. Eventually that forest was depleted and it was on to other options—like Farmer Seed and Nursery, Faribault Garden Center or Donahue’s Greenhouse. The nursery and garden center are permanently closed now, Donahue’s no longer open at Christmas.
The photo of Ken Mueller is new to the tree lot this season. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo December 2023)
Our go-to tree source now is Ken’s Christmas Trees, a temporary tree lot set up in a parking lot next to the now-closed Taco John’s. Ken Mueller started his holiday side business years ago at a north-side Faribault site along a busy thoroughfare. Eventually, he had to move and we followed him to his new location.
Ken has since retired. Sort of. On the December day Randy and I stopped by to buy our tree, he was vending trees, wreaths and more. His kids have taken over the business, but can’t always be there. So Ken steps in. And when he’s not around, he’s still there. A life-size photo cut-out of the Christmas tree vendor stands next to a row of trees. It was a surprise to Ken, who, even if he may not admit it, appreciates the unexpected, humorous recognition.
Ken’s Christmas Trees seems to have a loyal following of customers who appreciate his fresh trees, trucked in from Up North. Sizes and shapes range from the short and Charlie Brownish to larger, sculpted. Every year I bundle up, head to the west side of town and search for my imperfectly perfect Christmas tree.
TELL ME: Is your Christmas tree real or artificial? Why? I’d love to hear your stories.
Minnesota Prairie Roots 
Recent Comments