Observing a special moment in time

Recently I attended the high school graduation for a niece in my hometown of Thief River Falls. To me it was one of those moments when a person gets to see something special.

So, of course, there was a fellow seated behind my family who was offering grumpy comments. To put it briefly he thought the program was going too long. Now, I try to think maybe he had a rough day or he’d already been to more than one graduation recently. Still, graduations are more to mark a moment in people’s lives when they’ve reached an accomplishment. More often then not, it’s a somewhat serious time. I say somewhat, because I’ve been to enough ceremonies to see a graduate shout out “Rock and roll!” or pump their fists in the air as they cross the stage. Those instances I can understand far more, because the person is showing enthusiasm or it’s their last moment of rebellion in high school. For some families these are proud moments in their lives. The reasons for that can be many. It can be due to grades, or family issues, health or just showing determination to complete high school.

Also, if you pay attention, you’ll learn something about the senior class, either through what the student speakers, the principal or the superintendent have to say. At this graduation there were student speakers who honored a classmate who had died of cancer in her junior year. Through her treatment, she showed courage and kept her good spirits. I found out later this was her second battle with the disease, beating it into remission a few years earlier. Another student speaker reminded their classmates to be thankful, there were memories about the years leading up to high school and the last the four years of school.

That time of the season

Traveling to Thief River Falls is more than 300 miles or roughly six hours of driving, one way. When I lived near Rochester, it was more than a seven hour drive. I mentioned that to one person and his response was a wide eyed comment of “The state’s that big?” During the drive, it was a little hard not to notice the rows of farm fields. Whether the rows were recently overturned or there were crops just starting to spring out of the ground, we’re definitely into the farming season.

So, who else still notices that a lot of the state is farm land? Yes, there are those areas where there are trees as far as the eye can see, lakes that can be found on both sides of roads and some large areas of wetland, but along Interstate 94 and a lot of back roads its fields. In a few months there will be rows of corn, wheat, soybeans, sunflowers, sugar beets and various other crops.

There are still times that I just find it amazing how a field of crops can create a scene of simple beauty. There have been times when I’m driving along Scott County Road 2 between New Prague and Elko New Market, when I come over a hill and the sun is setting and there is this glow of green. It just seems the sunlight is sparking off the leaves of the corn and causing the tassels to glimmer.