Ozark Hills & Hollows June • July 2017

JUNE JULY 2017

Ozark

JUNE • JULY 2017

Hills Hollows C E L E B R AT I N G O U R H E R I TA G E , N E I G H B O R S A N D R U R A L L I V I N G I N T H E H E A R T O F A M E R I C A

10

Good Food on the Move Why I stop For Food Trucks

Ozark Hills&Hollows

18

Hill Talk Still Alive and Well in the Ozarks

21

Feel the Chill Homemade Popsicles to Keep You Cool

56

Uncork Good Wine Here A Tour of Area Wineries

JUNE • JULY 2017

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“Enjoy the beauty of a sunset nature's farewell kiss for the night.”

Sharon Rene

“Sunset is still my favorite color, and rainbow is second.”

Mattie Stepanek

“There's a sunrise and a sunset every single day, and they're absolutely free. Don't miss so many of them.”

Jo Walton

FLOAT. PLAY. STAY. The Elk River is a great choice for a summer float trip. We offer canoes, rafts, kayaks and tubes to rent for your floating pleasure!

We have a store and a cafe on site with many food options, along with our very popular pizza with delivery right to your site! We even cater BBQ diners.

Our campground features 35 air conditioned cabins that sleep from 6 to 24 people, electric and non-electric tent camping sites, and full hook-up RV sites.

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101 River Road Noel, Missouri 64854 800-951-6121

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June • July 2017 | 3

Ozark

Hills Hollows CELEBRATING OUR HERITAGE, NEIGHBORS AND RURAL LIVING IN THE HEART OF AMERICA

Our hope is to provide a window into the lifestyle, passions and beauty of the people and activities that are going on all around the Ozark communities we live in.

Our publication is widely available throughout southwest Missouri and northwest Arkansas.

Please enjoy this issue -- and if you want to support us, please do so by advertising!

Sherry Leverich ozarkhheditor@gmail.com 417-846-6171

Katrina Hine ozarkhhkat@gmail.com 620-870-1456

Our readers are your customers!

Ozark

Hills Hollows Celebrating Heritage, Farm and Healthy Living in the Heart of America PUBLISHER Rob Lotufo ozarkhillsandhollows@gmail.com EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Sherry Leverich ozarkhheditor@gmail.com DESIGN AND PRODUCTION Veronica Zucca ozarkhhart@gmail.com

WRITERS AND PHOTOGRAPHIC CONTRIBUTORS Katrina Hine Jerry Dean Kim Mobley Nahshon Bishop Amanda Reese Stan Fine Kayla Branstetter Beckie Block Layne Sleeth Steve Parker Lisa Florey PROOF EDITOR Barbara Warren

FACEBOOK Ozark Hills and Hollows Magazine TWITTER @ozarkhillhollow INSTAGRAM ozarkhillsandhollowsmagazine ONLINE www.issuu.com/ozarkhillsandhollows

www.ozarkhillsandhollows.com

Ozark Hills and Hollows is published bi-monthly by Exeter Press. In the pages of Ozark Hills and Hollows magazine, we hope to capture the spirit of country living in our beautiful region. Please feel free to contact any of our staff with comments and questions, and pass along any story subjects or ideas to our editor at ozarkhheditor@gmail.com. 417-652-3083 Exeter Press, P.O. Box 214, Exeter, MO 65647 4 |

OZARK

Hills&Hollows

Inside:

JUNE • JULY 2017 FEATURES: 10

Good Food on the Move Why I stop For Food Trucks

21

Feel the Chill Homemade Popsicles to Keep You Cool

36

Eating the Weeds Food Foraging Tips

50

Fiber Arts From the Alpaca to the Loom

53

What I Do With Eggplant Recipes and Technique

56

Uncork Good Wine Here A Small Tour of Wineries

64

Focused on What's on the Way Don Nelms Photography

68

Jesse and Frank A Look at Their Native Families

PLUS: 28

Gear & Gadgets Tools That Get the Job Done

32

Break the Cycle Make Your Yard a Canvas

42

Repurposing Revolution Readers Share Why They Re-use

46

Homestead Happiness Enjoying Life on Our Farm

60

Destination Ozarks Escape to Stonewater Cove

72

A Call to Arms Escaped Prisoners in the Ozarks

IN EVERY ISSUE:

COVER: Sunshine and dewdrops greet this dragonfly and signal the return of summer in the Ozarks.

Photo by Larry Strong of Marshfield, Missouri.

8

From the Ground Up Summer's as Sweet as a Ripe Melon

16

A Horsewoman's Journey

18

Backroads and Byways

Seasons Hill Talk is Still Alive

26

Among the Wildflowers

30

4 Tackle Hacks

Woodlands Speckled Gems For Ozark Fisher-Kids

34

Back Home in the Hills

40

Good For You

Booch's Pool Hall Beat the Heat

74

From the Hollow As Easy as Whitewash June • July 2017 | 5

ABOUT OUR CONTRIBUTORS: Layne Sleeth is a born and raised Ozarks dweller with a penchant for the natural world. She mostly resists her hermit tendencies for the belief that life is fuller when shared. Layne currently abides on a Southwest Missouri hilltop with her dearest dogs, cats, and creative husband, Brian. When not reading or jotting down words and thoughts, you can find Layne tending plants, retreating to their cabin in the Arkansas woods, ogling wildlife, or working on her first fantasy fiction saga.

Kayla Branstetter is a born and raised Ozarkian is an avid traveler and local educator who loves spending time with her family, reading literature, and running trails. She lives on a beef and chicken farm with her husband Chris and daughter, Berlin. Many reasons she enjoys living in the Ozarks centers on the culture, the friendly people and the beauty of each season.

Wes Franklin is a born native of the Missouri Ozarks, where he has lived all of his life. He enjoys reading and writing about local history, especially Ozark folklore and culture, as well as classic literature. He also enjoys shooting blackpowder weapons. He is closest to heaven when roaming the hills and hollows of his beloved Ozarks.

Steve Parker is a relatively new transplant to NWA. Growing up in the farming country, he received his teaching degree in Nebraska before venturing to Arizona where he continued his education and teaching career.

He and his wife Angie love to travel and have been to many countries around the world – but always look forward to coming back to the Ozarks Living in Fayetteville, he has become a rabid Razorback fan, a blues fan and enjoys the great food in the area. He loves to cook, ride his bike on the beautiful trails and... just enjoy life.

Katrina Williamson is a city girl who was born and raised in California. She relocated to the Ozarks 22 years ago where she married a cattle farmer. She soon realized she had always been a country girl at heart. Together, they raise cattle, goats, and three children.

When she is not spending time with her family, she is writing, reading, working in her garden or enjoying her chickens. She takes delight in writing about life experiences, farm life and also the beauty of nature. Check out her blog, happylifetaketwo.wordpress.com

Kim McCully-Mobley is a local educator, writer, self-described gypsy and storyteller with a homebased project dubbed The Ozarkian Spirit. The essence of this project is anchored in keeping the stories, legends, lore and history of the Ozarks region alive for the generations to come. She makes her home in Barry County on the Mobley Chicken Ranch with her husband, Al. She is always looking for that next adventure on the backroads and byways.

Katrina Hine is a relocated flatlander from Kansas, landing in the unique McDonald County region of Southwest Missouri. Her writing career began as a reporter for the local newspaper while pursing her Master's degree. Her continued passion to tell the stories of people, places and their history keeps life interesting. Katrina loves the endearing "realness" of the Ozark's and its people. She is a regular columnist in the McDonald County Historical Society newsletter, and also writes for Ozark Farm & Neighbor Ag newspaper and the Oklahoma Department of Tourism's magazine, Oklahoma Today. Her and her husband, Randall, have three grown children and eight grandchildren.

Beckie Block was born and raised in the Wheaton area, and is admittedly a small town girl. She enjoys her job in customer service, along with writing freelance and blogging. She admits to always carrying a pen and paper in case she needs to jot down thoughts and ideas to write later. She has three children, two at home and one in Nebraska, where she enjoys going to visit her two grand-daughters. Beckie spends her free time in church activities, gardening and baking.

Barbara Warren is a freelance editor with several years experience.

She is currently working on her fifth book to be published this winter. She has had short stories and articles published in magazines such as Mature Living and Home Life, as well as being a devotional writer for Open Windows. Barbara is one of the founders of the Mid-South Writers Group, and has been speaker at writers conferences and other area writers groups. She lives on a farm in the beautiful Ozarks, where they raise beef cattle.

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Laureen Lessard is a freelance writer living in the Missouri Ozarks.

Her stories have been featured in several magazine publications. She likes to solve mysteries and collect antique silver & metalware.

Larry Dablemont has a degree in wildlife management from the University of Missouri, and writes about all aspects of the outdoors.

Owner of Lightnin’ Ridge Publishing, he puts out an outdoor magazine, has written ten books and writes a weekly columns for 40 newspapers in three states. Does public speaking and publishes books for other writers. Born and raised on the Big Piney River, he worked many years as a naturalist for the Arkansas State Parks and as a naturalist for the National Park Service on the Buffalo River.

Lisa Florey recently moved back to the Ozarks after spending five years in the Chicago area. A freelance writer and editor, she spends her spare time horseback riding, polishing her photography skills and learning leatherwork. She's an avid traveler who's explored Iceland solo, ridden a mule into the Grand Canyon and is planning a pack trip in Yellowstone's backcountry.

Amanda Reese has spent most of her life training and teaching with horses. She has also studied journalism and is currently working on two books centered around her love of horses and God. When she is not riding or writing, Amanda enjoys spending time with her husband and two daughters on their farm.

Stan Fine is a resident of McDonald County in Missouri. Born in Long Beach California, he spent his childhood in the west, but went to high school in St. Louis. He then married his high school sweetheart, Robin. There they raised their two sons, David (who passed away with cancer in 2006) and Rob. Stan was a Detective Lieutenant in a St. Louis suburb and attained a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice Management, and a Master of Science in Administration. He retired in 2006 and he and Robin moved to Noel. Robin passed away, due to cancer, in 2013 after 46 years of marriage. Stan now plays golf, substitute teaches, and writes, especially in the wee morning hours.

A NOTE FROM THE PUBLISHER

When it Rains, it Pours

Beloved, Let Us Once More Praise The Rain

by Conrad Potter Aiken Beloved, let us once more praise the rain.

Let us discover some new alphabet, For this, the often praised; and be ourselves, The rain, the chickweed, and the burdock leaf, The green-white privet flower, the spotted stone, And all that welcomes the rain; the sparrow too,— Who watches with a hard eye from seclusion, Beneath the elm-tree w, till rain is done.

There is an oriole who, upside down, Hangs at his nest, and flicks an orange wing,— Under a tree as dead and still as lead; There is a single leaf, in all this heaven Of leaves, which rain has loosened from its twig: The stem breaks, and it falls, but it is caught Upon a sister leaf, and thus she hangs; There is an acorn cup, beside a mushroom Which catches three drops from the stooping cloud.

The timid bee goes back to the hive; the fly Under the broad leaf of the hollyhock Perpends stupid with cold; the raindark snail Surveys the wet world from a watery stone...

And still the syllables of water whisper: The wheel of cloud whirs slowly: while we wait In the dark room; and in your heart I find One silver raindrop,—on a hawthorn leaf,—

I

t's June, and I think most of us here in the Ozarks have had more than our fill of Spring rainfall this year.

Out here where the mountains meet the prairie, we have been very fortunate to be spared most of the flooding that ravaged the low lying and waterfront areas. Waterways like the Current, Elk and White rivers overflowed and wreaked havoc with local residents.

Reservoirs like Table rock, Beaver and Taneycomo strained their banks, and the dams that control them, and may take months to get back to normal levels. But like it always does, the sun came out and the waters receded, leaving behind green pastures and little reminder of the high water that had us unnerved for several weeks this season.

The soybeans and corn planted by our neighbors seem to be taking off nicely, and I believe everyone in the valleys have a healthy cutting of hay put up already. Most cattlemen had a productive calving season, and the price of beef is on the rise. Chicken, turkey and eggs continue to be in high demand. All in all, it's a good time to be a farmer in the Ozarks these days.

We have had great response to our last issue, and we appreciate all the new subscriptions we receive each

Orion in a cobweb, and the World.

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week. We are constantly amazed by the quality and variety of content that our contributors bring us. New additions like writer Laurie Lessard as well as photographers Larry Strong and Don Nelms bring a fresh perspective to Hills & Hollows, and we feel truly blessed to be able to feature their work in our magazine. In this issue, Sherry shows us how to pick a ripe watermelon and make some really cool popsicles. Lisa takes a tour of local food trucks, while I share some unusual eggplant dishes. Wash down all that food with some newfangled drink recipes, or sample local wines from Ozark wineries.

We explore the beautiful, but often overlooked jewel weed, and some alternative lawn strategies, as well as edible wild plants. Jesse offers kids some fishing tips, and we review some useful yard and garden implements.

In this season of sun and family fun, we wish you all the best. May your garden grow plump, sweet tomatoes, your okra be tender and bountiful, and your cucumbers make the best pickles ever. I hope you pick a great watermelon for your cookout, and your ribs are smokin' delicious! God bless America, from Ozark Hills & Hollows.

Robert Lotufo Publisher, Exeter Press

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ON SITE CREMATORY

June • July 2017 | 7

groundUP From the

Summer’s asSweet Sweetas asaaRipe RipeMelon Melon Summer as

BY SHERRY LEVERICH

I

want to start with a disclaimer: I am not an expert ripe watermelon picker, and, just because a watermelon is ripe doesn't mean it will be perfectly sweet. I love growing and eating watermelon, but I have struggled with picking and then selling watermelon for the fear of cutting into an either green or over-ripe watermelon.

Oh, there isn't anything like eating a cold, sweet watermelon on a hot summer day. It's almost better than a glass of iced tea when you've been outside working and in need of refreshment. When you cut open that watermelon, it can be disappointing if it isn't at it's peak. Personally I do not mind a melon slightly under-ripe, but my palate is disturbed by a gritty over-ripe melon. An over-ripe melon also won't keep at all, where-as a perfectly ripe or slightly under-ripe one will keep for up to a week in the fridge if kept in the rind.

AT THE MARKET: If you are purchasing a melon at a market there are several indications of a ripe melon. Always look for a healthy looking melon with a green stem. If the stem isn't green it has been picked for awhile or came off of a dead vine. The melon should be the right size for it's variety, a smaller one could possibly be under-ripe (picked early along with larger more mature melons). If you rub your hand over the

melon it should be slightly bumpy, a very smooth melon is probably immature. The underside of the melon should be creamy yellow (not green). Yes, thumping is good. Thump as many melons as you like.

If it sounds hollow and not high pitched, it is a good indication of ripeness. In the old days small “plugs” would be pulled out of melons to check for ripeness, but that is rarely done in this day.

AT YOUR GARDEN: If picking a melon that is growing in your garden a few more items can be considered. Keeping track of the date of germination and using the maturation date of that variety can help if you grew them from seed. Something that I find very helpful is looking at the curly Q's on the vine. The curly Q growing closest to the melon should be dried up when it is ripe.

Thumping is even better at home because the tones of different melons can

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be compared; the more lower pitched or hollow sounding tone should be the ripest. If it is a large patch of melons, the riper ones will have a matte sheen, while the immature ones will look more shiny. I know farmers that grow large patches can just look out over their melons and know which ones are ripe.

We had another fun technique that someone told us about at the farmers market one summer. Take a piece of straw (a straight, dried stem will work) and lay it on the melon. Give one end of the straw a flick and if it will spin on the melon it should be ripe, if it just toggles back and forth, try another melon. Don't ask me the physiology of this one, but it must have something to do with the water content!

We are still waiting for local watermelons to ripen here in the Ozarks.

I just can't wait to cut open my first one of the year! Enjoy your local melons and next time you're at a local market, ask the farmers how they know when a melon is ripe. I'd love to know some other tricks!

Kung Pao Chicken

BY FO RE ST E R FARMER’S MA RKET

1 lb. Forester Farmer’s Market® Boneless Skinless Breasts, cut into 1” cubes 1 Tbsp. Soy Sauce 2 tsp Chinese Rice Wine or Dry Sherry 1 1/2 tsp Cornstarch Sauce: 1 Tbsp. Chinese Black Vinegar, or good-quality Balsamic Vinegar 1 tsp Soy Sauce 1 tsp Hoisin Sauce 1 tsp Sesame Oil 2 tsp Sugar 1 tsp Cornstarch 1/2 tsp Ground Sichuan Pepper 2 Tbsp. Peanut or Vegetable Oil 8 -10 Dried Red Chilies 3 Scallions, White & Green Sections Separated, Thinly Sliced 2 ea. Garlic Cloves, Minced 1 tsp Minced or Grated Fresh Ginger 1/4 Cup Unsalted Dry-Roasted Peanuts

Forester Farmer’s Market® is butcher-shop quality chicken – a healthy, wholesome chicken that is rare in today’s marketplace.

Our nutritious, hometown quality will take you back to a time when chicken was chicken.

Why Forester?

ALL NATURAL

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION, PER SERVING: 352 CALORIES 16 G FAT 1 G SATURATED FAT 29 G CARBOHYDRATE 7 G FIBER 3 G SUGARS 30 G PROTEIN

Marinate the chicken: In a medium bowl, stir together the soy sauce, rice wine, and cornstarch until the cornstarch is dissolved. Add the chicken and stir gently to coat.

Let stand at room temperature for 10 minutes.

Prepare the sauce: In another bowl, combine the black vinegar, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, sesame oil, sugar, cornstarch, and Sichuan pepper. Stir until the sugar and cornstarch are dissolved and set aside.

You may need to turn on your stove’s exhaust fan, because stir-frying dried chilies on high heat can get a little smoky. Heat a wok or large skillet over high heat until a bead of water sizzles and evaporates on contact. Add the peanut oil and swirl to coat the base. Add the chilies and stir-fry for about 30 seconds, or until the chilies have just begun to blacken and the oil is slightly fragrant. Add the chicken and stirfry until no longer pink, 2 to 3 minutes.

Add the scallion whites, garlic, and ginger and stir-fry for about 30 seconds.

Pour in the sauce and mix to coat the other ingredients. Stir in the peanuts and cook for another 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to a serving plate, sprinkle the scallion greens on top, and serve.

Find more great recipes at www.foresterfarmersmarket.com

RAISED WITH NO

OR STEROIDS G

My goal is to provide your family the same quality chic ken that Ma cooked for Dad. Trea t your family to chicken that’s chic ken. r d r ar

nder

foresterfarmersmarket.com June • July 2017 | 9

good food ➼ ➼ WHY I STOP FOR FOOD TRUCKS

on the move F

STORY AND PHOTOS

BY LISA FLOREY

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ood trucks today are so much more than a hot dog cart on the corner of a city street. From decked-out vans to converted school buses and vintage trailers, these mobile kitchens dole out tasty food made to order.

Popular attractions in metropolitan areas from coast to coast, food trucks have hit the streets of the Ozarks. Springfield, Mo., and Bentonville, Ark., are two cities in the region that have dedicated spaces for food trucks. And then there’s the food truck festivals that are draw foodies who come from hours away to sample the fares. These family-friendly events have something for everyone and showcase local flavors, music and more.

One popular food truck festival is Carthage’s Food Truck Fridays, held from 12-9 p.m. the second Friday of each month from April through September.

In its second year, this event draws over a thousand people each time, with some diners coming from as far away as Kansas City. Started in 2016 by food truck entrepreneur Caleb Stiles, Food Truck Friday has brought more than new tastes to the community.

“I want to give Carthage more options for food and entertainment in town,” Stiles said. “I have a passion for my community and its people to make more of what we already have.”

This year, the festival partnered with the Carthage Convention and Visitor’s Bureau. The number of food trucks has doubled since its beginnings, with over a dozen restaurants on wheels participating — and that number is expected to grow.

Held in Carthage’s picturesque Central Park, just off its historic square, Food Truck Friday features mobile food vendors, live music, activities for kids, a car show and more. The event offers something to satisfy everyone, and you won’t go home hungry.

“There was a great turnout for our April event,” Wendi Douglas, Executive Director of the Carthage CVB, said. “We don’t count how many people come to the event, but I would say it was our mostattended event so far.”

Bring your appetite so you can eat your way through the festival. Start with a tasty appetizer, then have a main course with a side and finish off with dessert — all from different restaurants. April’s menu included all-American fare like pizza, BBQ and burgers to flavors from across the pond and south of the border. For those with a sweet tooth, there were cupcakes, shaved ice, ice cream floats and more.

“We don’t really limit the number of trucks, but will limit the number of trucks selling a certain [type of ] food,” Douglas said. “It’s a juried event decided on a case by case basis by a committee. We’re really excited that the event has grown so much and hope it brings even more to the area.”

The community has rallied around Food Truck Friday, helping plan and coordinate logistics. In addition to people who volunteer their time, the parks and recreation department put in several

picnic tables and Carthage Water and Electric supplied power for the mobile restaurants in the park.

“I’ve been in event planning for 10-15 years and this seems like one of the easiest events to plan because people are really behind the effort and getting involved,” Douglas said. “We welcome anyone to join us.”

The variety — and creativity — in the food truck industry is evident in the menus, truck designs and names. A taste of April’s Food Truck Friday: Wood-fired pizzas from Woody’s Wood Fire Pizza, which regularly sets up shop in Joplin, were a hit. Each pizza was made to order in the shop’s mobile woodfired oven.

For the taco lover, there was not one, but three authentic taco trucks. Ghetto

Tacos, Taco the Town and Taco 66 dished up everything from made-from-scratch tortillas, carne asada tacos, nachos, Korean BBQ tacos, adobada tacos and more.

You can’t have a food festival in the South without BBQ. Smokin’ Joe’s BBQ of Liberal and Prime Cut of Monett infused the park with their smoky flavors.

British pastys, Banoffee pies and other handmade English foods added an international flavor, courtesy of London Calling Pasty Company, which rolled in from Springfield.

The Paddy Wagon Grill operated out of a food truck outfitted with fake bullet holes and a menu of criminally good sandwiches, burgers and other comfort foods. The Trigger Man’s Fried Meatloaf Sandwich or the Prison Break Tenderloin were popular items from its diner-style menu.

June • July 2017 | 11

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Those with a sweet tooth congregated at Pineapple Bliss for its signature lowcalorie pineapple whip.

Sweet — part of Taco the Town’s fleet — melted up gourmet grilled cheese sandwich combinations and satisfied sweet cravings with their ice cream floats and brownie sundaes.

Other trucks at April’s Food Truck Friday included Lynne’s Artsy Bakery, the Popcorn Guy, Shiver Me Shavers and Maggie’s Custom Cafe.

The appeal of food trucks is their fresh food and personalized service. You can watch as your order is prepared — and it’s often the chef who takes your order and hands you your food. Among those chefs at Food Truck Friday was Stiles and the Lunch Box Truck.

Credited with bringing the food truck revolution to Carthage, Stiles opened his food truck, the Lunch Box Truck, in 2015 and hasn’t looked back since.

“A food truck is something that has

never been done in Carthage. I really like doing things that aren’t being done or haven’t been done in a long time,” Stiles said.

Stiles grew up celebrating food, so it was only natural that he made a career out of it.

“My family was a food family. Major holidays were a spread, but birthdays at Mammaw’s is where the real delicacies steamed, sizzled and sautéed their way from the kitchen to the dining room table,” Stiles said. “That passion for making good food, gathering great friends and filling hungry bellies was passed on to me. I love food and I love cooking for others.”

Getting the Lunch Box Truck up and running was a dream Stiles worked hard to achieve. Stiles attended culinary school at Ozark Technology Community College in Springfield, Missouri, and has years of food industry experience — including a stint in Australia.

In an industry where foot traffic is essential to survival, setting up a mobile food business in Carthage was a challenge at first. “Living in a rural area where there aren’t large concentrations of people walking around is a problem,” Stiles said.

But a strong social media presence and positive word of mouth drew in diners.

Stiles was also inspired to start Food Truck Friday as a way to drum up business while bringing the community together.

Stiles also had to adapt to making a small space work efficiently. “I thought because there wasn’t a dining room and a half the size of a normal kitchen it would be easier,” Stiles said. “Wrong!”

Now that he’s gained a following and gotten used to the intricacies of a mobile kitchen, Stiles typically feeds several hundred people out of his truck at Food Truck Fridays and other special events.

His menu revolves around handcrafted gourmet sandwiches, salads and soups.

The apricot smoked turkey and the SLR (grilled chicken, cream cheese, pesto mayo, bacon, avocado, lettuce and tomato on ciabatta bread) sandwiches are two of his most popular items.

This year, the Lunch Box Truck will offer weekend lunches and make appearances at special events. On weekdays, you will find Stiles crafting gourmet burgers at the new Woodshed Burger House located inside Cherry’s Art Emporium on the square in downtown Carthage.

June • July 2017 | 13

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A Horsewoman’s Journey

BY AMANDA REESE

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his morning, I put out minerals for the cattle. It was the beginning of a beautiful day; hence, I wasn’t in a hurry to get back to the house. I parked by our little lake and shut my truck off. I sat quietly and watched the cattle eating their minerals.

The soon to be weaned calves looked fat and healthy. The cows, however, were a little underweight and in need of a break. Weaning the calves gives the cows time to recover before they have baby calves to care for again.

Although it is necessary, I always feel a little sad to take a baby away from its mother.

The cow and calf don’t understand why they are being separated. At first, they bawl for each other. Eventually they settle down, accept the change, and enter a new season.

Throughout life, seasons change. In Ecclesiastes 3:1, Solomon tells us, “There is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.”

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Change can be hard. Our human souls look for something consistent to cling to.

Yet the Bible guarantees seasons change.

Even in marriage there are changing seasons. God created marriage to last, “until death do us part,” but within marriage children are born, children are raised, children leave home, sickness comes and goes, jobs come and go, finances shift, spouses change, retirement comes and eventually a spouse dies. So where do we look; where do we go to find the constant our soul is looking for?

In Hebrews 13:8, the Bible says, “Jesus

Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.” Jesus is the Only constant where our soul can be secure. If you need an anchor throughout the storms of life, cling to Jesus. If you need the peace of knowing something will remain the same in your life as seasons change, cling to Jesus.

Season are necessary. We may not understand the reason for each season. But God does. He has a plan and is working out His purpose through it all, the joyful times and the trying times are all necessary. We can take comfort in the Sovereignty of God. We can also, let our hearts be at rest, when

“To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; a time to kill and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; a time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.”

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

we realize God loves us and has our best interest in mind.

Don’t live fearing your life might change; it will change. Instead, as you walk with God, live joyfully, embracing the season you are in. God has led you to it for a reason. Learn the lessons He is teaching you, and trust the work He is doing.

If you are facing hard changes or a difficult season, I am praying for you. I am asking God to comfort you and remind you, He is your constant through each season of life.

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June • July 2017 | 17

Backroads

& Byways

Here is a street scene of Aurora a century ago. This old R.E. Hinchey postcard captured the town as its residents pondered the concepts of progress and tradition, while weighing the pros and cons of automobiles, education and the values of hill talk.

Hill Talk is Still Alive and Well in the Ozarks

BY KIM MCCULLY-MOBLEY

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R

umor has it that "hill talk" is fading fast.

I reckon I hate that.

Bein' a writer, editor, publisher, fulltime teacher and an English professor, I figure most folks think I'll throw a hissy fit if 'n a comma is out of place or some sech word ain't quite spelt right.

But, as I sit on my porch swing and ponder the recent gully-washers, I am plum-skeered to think of ketchin' that dog-gone train to progress and a more monotonous way of speakin'.

I told a student working on a poster the other day to, “grab that yella marker.”

He looked up at me and grinned. “Mrs. Mobley, did you say yella?”

“Well, yes, by cracky, I sure did, sonny.

An’ if you want to pull yerself up by those bootstraps and go take a look out the winda, you’ll see a yella bus outside…”

Blame it all on my roots, I guess. I am a hillbilly at heart.

The truth is, I am fascinated with language and sounds and words of all cultures. I love to hear the Cajun dialect down by New Orleans and I enjoy the

way folks from Minnesota clip their consonants from somewhere down deep in their gullets. I have always enjoyed my Arkansas cousins and the way they say things like: pie, bye, hi and why – as if butter were dripping off their tongues in multiple-syllable fashion. An autumn trip to Mexico made me remember the sheer poetry of the Hispanic culture and its language – so rich in color and vibrant in expression.

One of my best friends is from the French Quarter. My husband grew up near Vicksburg, Mississippi. Another pal’s mom is from Water Valley, Mississippi. I love hearing all three of them talk.

When I was in Atlanta, Georgia, for a writing workshop, a cab driver told my friend and me that he guessed I had to be from Arkansas.

Incensed, I informed him that my ancestors were from Arkansas, but that I hailed from a place about 40 miles north – where we talk more normal, of course. I can stretch my dialect to sound like those Arkansawyers who say "Bareville" in two syllables, with the stress on the first. You can always tell a non-native if he/she says "Berryville" and strings it out into three full, equal syllables like "berry" is really what you say.

A friend of mine says that I "countrify" my words in a batter made of a healthy vocabulary churned with Ozark colloquialisms and phrases. She says my voice has a lilt and a rhythm to it that literally puts her to sleep. (I’m not sure that’s a good thing!)

I used to try to get these mannerisms out of my speech. I practiced saying: going, running, batting, stretching and working,… making sure I enunciated the “g” on the end of the words. But somehow, you can take the girl out of the country – yet you can't ever really take the country out of the girl. I can talk more formally at times, than others, depending on the construction of my audience.

But if you study the stories and languages and cultures of the world, you realize we all have some common threads and connections. For instance, every culture has a boogey man, some ghost stories, some superstitions and some interesting home remedies.

Thousands of the pioneers of the Ozarks came this way from the Appalachian Mountains. Likewise, much of the "hill talk" derived from a different set of hills and made the journey to another home in the Ozarks.

I grew up hearing the voices of my grandparents using these sayings and quickly latched onto my favorite parts of this jargon…”Finer than frog’s hair…God willin’ and the creek don’t rise…half a brick short of a load…sittin’ pretty…I’ll declare…dang tootin’…too pooped to pop…knock a knot on your noggin’…much obliged.”

My Grandma Carrie Estes died when I was about seven, but I was always mesmerized by the fact that she named my dad, Thomas Stanford Estes, yet couldn't call him "Stan" like everyone else did. In fact, she would often lift her tiny frame up on its toes and holler "Stamp!" and anxiously await my dad's reply. I was never really sure if she couldn't say the "N" on the end of the word, or if this was just her hill version of my dad's name.

(Later discussions with family members raised the fact that it might have been the occasional dip of snuff that kept her lips from pursing together to make the necessary consonant sound.) By the same token, she often spoke of sitting herself down in a "cheer," instead of a "chair."

My Grandpa Herman McMorris, my mom's father, was known far and wide for his firm handshake, low tolerance for anyone being mistreated and his standard response of "Purdy good!" when anyone asked him how he'd been. His low voice resonated with his passion for life, his family and his Boston Mountains.

The late Wayne Holmes, a local storyteller and professor, always said that you can tell when someone is a natural hill talker as their words "will

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The road that led me to my Grandpa Herman's farm, where I first learned the magic of hill talk.

inevitably ring true." If he or she is not a native speaker, then the words fall short of the mark for which they were intended and you should be suitably suspicious!

I always think of John Wayne playing Young Matt in the Hollywood version of Shepherd of the Hills. I’m sure they were thinking about the almighty dollar when they chose John to play the backward/ hillbilly role. But he comes across sounding like…well…like John Wayne.

His words don’t ring true and I was always waiting for the cavalry to come bursting through Jim Lane’s cabin or something.

(After all, it is John Wayne!)

A book I have on the Ozarks and its heritage was published in 1975 by Ernie Deane, who says: "We've already come to the point where uniformity prevails in such matters as clothing styles, foods, entertainment and architecture. Some folks will say that this is good, for we thus approach equality, for we thus debate the soundness of our theory, but do suggest that equality in all things brings us mighty

close to monotony in life. Most humans react adversely to monotony."

I can't help but wonder if hill talk is really fading. It's hard to condone the use of it on paper for formal writing purposes.

I love to hear the rise and fall of the voices of the various folks at the local diner or the whoopin’ and hollerin’ of excited fans at a ballgame. I can always learn some new phrases at the feed store or the local barbershop, too.

But the sights and sounds of the Ozarks certainly do "ring true" with a cacophony of voices, which bring language and stories to an all new plane – amidst the hills and hollers of our region. Monotony is not a way of life here. Diversity is evident in our habits, our mannerisms and our speech. We cram more into a 24-hour day than people who live in other places can even begin to imagine. We know how to work. We know how to play. We know how to love our families. We cling tight to our faith. We dare anyone to question our integrity.

If you close your eyes and listen closely, you can hear their voices. These are our voices.

They speak with a richness that comes with love, loss, labor, sweat and a promise of a better tomorrow. They live on what they can provide for themselves and they believe in helping their neighbors, friends and strangers.

Their foundations are based on loyalty, faith, hope and love.

They will pick and choose their battles. They will step in to help you when you feel most alone. They will make you laugh amidst your tears. Most are not afraid of a good fight, as long as it doesn't interfere with gettin' the hay in, eatin' breakfast or watching a ballgame.

The hillfolk of yesteryear liked to eat poke greens, turnip greens, bacon grease, cornbread, possum gravy, chitlins, sorghum and fried chicken. Minus the possum gravy, some of these menu items have stayed the same.

They loved to explore the backwoods and backroads, while looking to float the nooks and crannies of the rivers and creeks scattered about the terrain.

There are some who believe that drinking sassafras tea will make their blood thin and that Mountain Dew is a thing of the past – unless you "still" have a still in your cellar. For a while, my Aunt Helen had us drinking two tablespoons of honey and a dash of cinnamon in hot water on a daily basis. Strangely enough, I actually felt better.

Some might think that the magic poultices of camphor gum and whiskey will cure or kill almost anything. In fact, some of the local experts say to pour some of it on the spot that's ailing and drink the rest. That sounds a little risky to me, but I’m willing to try it.

Is hill talk really fading fast?

I reckon we ought to slow it down a little.

Just close your eyes and listen.

I think you can still hear the voices.

Now, where’s that yella marker?

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Hills&Hollows

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FROSTBITE BITE Brain Freeze and Numb Tongues to Feel the Chill when the Heat is On FRUIT AND YOGURT POPS are easy, creamy and cool! Try them for summer breakfast!

See recipe on page 63

June • July 2017 | 21

JELL-O POPS are a throw-back from the eighties that needs to make the scene again! Fruity, versatile and no-drip.

See recipe on page 63

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Refreshing and a kid-pleaser, try out these ROOTBEER FLOAT POPS during your next summer party.

See recipe on page 63

TIPS: REMEMBER THE CONCEPT OF EXPANSION: Don’t overfill your popsicles molds, leave a bit of room for the expansion that occurs during freezing so mold blow-outs don’t happen.

KEEP IT SMOOTH: Make sure any added sugars is melted or thoroughly dissolved in the mixing process, or the result will be gritty granules in the bottom of the popsicle.

POP THAT SUCKER: If your pop doesn’t easily release from the mold, run it quickly under warm water – and it should quickly unmold.

CHILL OUT: When making chunky pops it can help keep chunks suspended rather than falling to the bottom if the mixture is pre-chilled to almost freezing before pouring into molds.

DEEP FREEZE: Freeze ‘em good! If pops aren’t completely frozen, and froze hard, they could break off when removing from molds, or the stick could come out too. Most recipes should freeze at least 4 hours, but overnight is better!

June • July 2017 | 23

PUDDING POPS are creamy and indulgent enough for a decadent dessert. Take the easy way and make them with a mix, or bring it up a notch and make them with home-made vanilla bean pudding.

See recipe on page 63

ALTERNATIVE MOLDS: Don’t have actual popsicle molds on hand? Don’t let that stop you! Many items can be used for popsicle vessels!

SAFETY FIRST: Only consider food safe vessels for freezing your pops in. Anything that can be used for foods, or once held food products are good choices.

THE OPTIONS: Single serve yogurt containers are great. Ice cube trays make sweet little 'sicle poppers! Small plastic toddler cups are wonderful and durable too. In a pinch, disposable dixie cups are great for one time use as well! Minimuffin pans aren’t a great shape, but can work too.

STICK IT: Popsicle sticks (of course) are a great solution for handling your pop.

Disposable plastic utensils work very fine as well. Pops can either be covered with aluminum foil or plastic, and the stick poked through (to hold the stick upright during freezing) – or go ahead and partially freeze pops and then add stick.

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June • July 2017 | 25

Among the Wildflowers

Speckled Gems of the Shady Woodlands J E W E LW E E D

BY ROB LOTUFO PHOTOS BY LAYNE SLEETH AND ROB LOTUFO

I

used to wander along a piece of bottom land in a place we called “the Cove.” It had a creek flowing through it, where the soil was black and moist most all year long. After an all night rain one morning in early June, I was out scouting, and I stumbled upon a sight I'll never forget. I pushed through some shoulder high ironweed, and heard a loud buzzing sound. There in front of me was a huge, tall patch of Jewelweed. The masses of orange and red blossoms were glistening with dew drops like gems in the sun. And instead of bees, the flowers were alive with the buzzing of Hummingbirds, dozens of them. Regrettably, in the weeks that followed, the flowers died back in the summer heat, and we ended up bush hogging that snakey, swampy patch to make way for more pasture. It had been a perfect mixture of just enough moisture, sun, and the right soil. Sadly, I guess I'll not see that beautiful picture again.

ORANGE JEWELWEED, IMPATIENS CAPENSIS, SPOTTED TOUCH-ME-NOT, ORANGE BALSAM The mature plants grow 3 to 5 feet projectile seeds that explode when they tall and bloom from late spring to early are touched, which is where the name fall. Trumpet shaped flowers hang from 'touch-me-not' comes from. Dew or rain them much as a jewel from a necklace. beads up on the leaves, forming sparkling The blossoms are red/orange (or rarely droplets, hence the common name of yellow). The ripe seed pods are have Jewelweed.

The name “pink” is not derived by the color of the flower, but by the serrated petals that resemble something cut by pinking sheers.

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GOOD MEDICINE The juice of the leaves and stems is a traditional Native American cure for skin rashes, including poison ivy and poison oak, stinging nettle, insect bites, burns, foot fungus and is a folk remedy for many other skin disorders. Herbalists generally concur with this treatment as well.

Jewelweed contains a compound called lawsone in its leaves proven to have anti-histamine and anti-inflammatory properties. Lawsone works by counterreacting with the chemicals in other plants that cause irritation.

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HOW TO USE When you are out in the field and find you have been exposed to poison ivy, oak or stinging nettle you can reach for the Jewelweed plant and slice the stem, then rub its juicy inside on exposed parts. This will promptly ease irritation and usually prevents breakout for most people.

An infusion made from boiling leaves may be frozen for later use. Brew chopped leaves and flowers in boiling water until you get a dark orange liquid. Strain the liquid and pour into ice cube trays. When you have a skin rash, rub it with a Jewelweed cube and you will be amazed with its healing properties. It will keep in freezer up to a year. You can also preserve the infusion by canning it in a pressure cooker. Poultices and salves have been used for bruises, burns, cuts, eczema, insect bites, sores, sprains, warts and ringworm.

HABITAT This woodland beauty often grows on the edge of creek beds. There is usually plenty of it in the wild, and it is not hard to locate once you learn to identify it. These can be found in moist woods growing side-by-side with their less common relative, Yellow Jewelweed as well as Stinging Nettle (it does sting). Common lore often says that wherever you find poison ivy, you will find Jewelweed – however this is not always true. It will not grow in dry places for long, and will perish in direct sunlight.

Poison Ivy will grow in sun or shade. An annual that often occurs in dense stands, it is especially adapted to hummingbird visitation; but bees and butterflies are also important pollinators.

Most of us get a chance to see a single or multiple blossomed specimen in the summer at the edge of a creek, or on the shady side of a road or path. I hope someday the stars line up just right, and you stumble on to a cache of these glistening jewels like I did, it's quite a sight to see.

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Cataract A - Ozarks Hills & Hollows Ad MNP 2.31" x 9.75"

GEAR&GADGETS

BY JESSE WOODROW

TOOLS That Get the Job Done W

hen you're working in the yard, in the garden or out in the pasture, good tools are imperative for handling specific jobs that everyone encounters. Look for tools that are well-made and strong. Single piece forged tools will last longer than welded or cast ones.

Hardwood handles work great as long as they are kept in a shed and out of the elements. Fiberglass is light, strong, and unaffected by water, but can break or deteriorate with excessive sun exposure.

NO-FAIL SHOVEL

HAND HOE

BROAD FORK

I have had good shovels, and I have had bad shovels. When you need a shovel that won't chip because you use it to pry with, and a handle that won't break – choose a heavy duty model that is made to last. Bully Tools are 100 percent American Made. They make a durable fiberglass handle shovel with a stepping lip that runs the entire edge of the shovel, helping you get a good foot grip.

This is my go-to for taking down undesired weeds, planting small plants and flowers and cultivating small areas. Sometimes called Japanese Hoes, these little gems are equipped with a blade on one side and a small fork on the other.

A small handle, about 15-inches, is what makes this thing so handy! It's what I take with me when I am in the pasture to chop down noxious weeds while checking on the cattle.

A different take on the versatile potato fork, this broad fork gives double the lever power with two handles. American made Red Pig Tools makes a wellmade model worth mentioning. Check it out at www.redpigtools.com

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What kind of tools do you need?

MATTOCK AND PICK are a must for digging trenches – the mattock for digging, and the pick for dealing with pesky rocks.

Choose one that has a comfortable grip for you, and is as big as you can handle.

HOE A garden hoe is just the thing for weeding garden plants and cultivating that top few inches of the soil.

SHOVEL Round Point or Square Point.

The round point shovel is your best bet when digging a hole for tree-planting, and works great for moving small rocks and gravel. When you need to scrape the bottom, though, or work with concrete, the square point shovel handles better.

when a tree needs to be chopped, or a notch needs to be scored in a fence rail.

RAKE BOW rakes help in the garden to consolidate small rocks and also level out raised beds. Leaf rakes are great to gather sticks and leaves.

HAND SAW Good to handle those lowlying limbs that get in the way of mowing, or small lumber-cutting jobs.

POST HOLE DIGGER This single purpose tool will be your favorite when you do have a deep hole to dig.

FORK Pitch or Potato forks work best

TAMPING BAR Nothing helps loosen tough

AX There isn't any replacement for an ax

for tasks with hay or straw. A Potato fork is very versatile. Great for digging up plants with large roots, as well as digging potatoes.

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www.racebros.com June • July 2017 | 29

4

Tackle Hacks for Ozark Fisher-kids

BY JESSE WOODROW

M

aybe you are sitting on a log on the creek bank. Maybe you are perched in the front of Dad, or Papaw's boat. You may be standing on a dock,or even wading in a cold, clear trout stream. I'm writing this for the kids who are too old for Pops to be baiting their hook, but a little confused by the complications of fishing gear. I'm going to give you a couple of my favorite tricks for spending more time catching, and less time tying and detangling and searching for just the right rig.

LINE You may hear adults talking about "ultralight" line/rod/reel combos. That's all fine, but here's whats important: You need a heavy enough line to get out of trouble when you snag your bait on a tree, or a rock without breaking, but light enough to cast well, and not be too visible to the fishies. I don't recommend using less than 8-lb line until you become very good at casting, and staying out of the bushes and stuff. The line should fit the setup.

Maybe 8-lb test for croppie, brim and trout, 15-lb test for most bass fishing, and 20 or 25-lb for big bass rigs and catfish.

A plastic bobber tangled in a tree limb is a common sight on the lake

HOOKS When you are fishing a cricket, worm, corn or even marshmallows, I like the old #4 gold aberdeen. Its easy to hold, easy to get out of their mouth, and here's a secret – they will straighten out if they get hung on something, and you pull very firmly and carefully. I have only maybe twice had a monster fish straighten out one of these while I was trying to land him, and it was probably because I rushed him. When I'm fishing a large live bait, I use a big old hook like a #3 O bait holder. Just like the line, the hook should be stout enough to keep you out of trouble, but small enough to fit in their mouth, and not scare the fish away.

A little rainbow, these can be easy to catch with powerbait, corn or marshmallows

BOBBERS I grew up with the red and white plastic push button bobber. You can usually find these wrapped around a low hanging limb from where somebody got cross wise on a bad cast. These will work, but do yourself a favor and try a balsa wood stick float. They cast and retrieve easier, and best of all, when Mr. Nibbles is messing with your bait, they stand straight up and tell you when to set the hook! This will change your odds of hooking up, and not getting your bait stolen by a lot, I promise!

Balsa wood "stick" or "pencil" float

LURES Look for lures that say "weedless"! If you are like I was when I was a kid (and even now), you get restless and bored with slowly retrieving an artificial lure. Jigs and grubs are a little more fun, and work very well. Crankbaits are really fun, but they are expensive, and very prone to hang ups. A weedless jig casts easy, stays out of trouble, and can catch fish as well as anything. Look out for line twist! I used to love to fish a rooster tail for trout, and panfish, but they would cause my line to twist and tangle about every dozen casts. Try a Beetle Spin or something like it instead. They don't cause the line to twist, and the fish like the combo of swirling flash and squishy bait.

The beetlespin can be your secret weapon, and keep your line tangle-free.

Those are just a couple of kid-friendly tips you might want to consider on your next trip to the pond, lake or river. Try not too catch a lot more fish than the old folks, you'll make them feel bad about themselves! But seriously, here's a real secret that they don't want you to know. They are having much more fun watching you fish then they ever could fishing by themselves. So drop some hints, and I'm pretty sure you can get them to take you most any time you want. See if you can bargain some snacks, drinks or even an ice cream into the deal. Grown ups get pretty sentimental when they get the chance to take a kid fishing.

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A Unique Ozarks Experience Breakfast • Lunch • Pies • Deli • Ice Cream Enamel Ware • Bulk Spices • Baked Goods And So Much More!

Are you in control of your finances From basic bookkeeping t re e nan ia needs, we can help you.

THE AREA’S MOST OFTEN CHOSEN FUNERAL HOME

Fohn

FUNERAL HOME Owners Jim and Janice Fohn

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••• The•••

Jane Store

2980 Rains Road, Jane Missouri TUE-SAT 417-226-1234

6am-3pm

Turn east at Hwy. 90 and I-49/Hwy. 71 nc on, at l t. ast on Hwy. 90 to n t e road, t rn le and ead nort ll yo see e ane tore on t e west s de.

Friendly helpful folks that will go out of their way to help you find what you’re looking for!

FIND YOUR TREASURES AT

ngland

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TAX

&ACCOUNTING LLC

615 Ozark Street, Stella, MO 64867

417-628-3406

Donna Y England, RTRP englandtax@leru.net

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IMMEDIATE ARRA G

We offer our support with online and in-person support as you consider making immediate arrangements.

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Our website offers many helpful articles by the Center for Loss and Life Transition - Alan Wolfelt, Ph.D., Director

Gigabit Internet COMING SOON! goBEC Fiber Network is close to completion in the Cassville area.

Exciting new services will be available this Summer with comparable pricing!

• Up to 1 gigabit internet speeds • No data caps!

• IPTV Digital Television • Digital Phone Servie • 100% Fiber Network • Local Customer Service • No contract required

Questions?

JR Smith

417-847 2131 • jsmith@barryelectric.com

Three locations serving Southwest Missouri CASSVILLE

1303 N. Main 417.847.2141

SHELL KNOB Highway 39 417.858.3151

McQueen Funeral Home WHEATON

514 Hurlbut (Hwy W) 417.652.7268

ANTIQUES AND COLLECTIBLES UNIQUE BOOTHS, FRIENDLY FOLKS!

For a list of current scheduled services please visit our website:

114 W. Main Street Anderson, MO 417-845-ROSE (7673) M-Sat: 10 am - 6pm, Sun: 12pm - 5pm

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Please call us at 417-847-2141 to set up an appointment to discuss pre-planning with a caring professional.

www.gobec.net

www.fohnfuneralhome.com June • July 2017 | 31

Make Your Yard Your Canvas B R EAK I NG TH E LAW N CYCL E WI T H NATURAL LA N D S CAP E S STORY BY KATRINA HINE

H

ow many people really enjoy mowing their yard… in the rock and weed laden Ozark hills?

Whether you live in the rural Ozarks or urban Ozarks, we all fight the same battles; weeds, rogue grass, rocks, and deer. But who wrote the “yard law” stating it must only contain grass?

Spring rains put grass into hyperdrive, forcing you to mow almost every other day just so you can find the dog! It is times like this you consider grabbing the neighbor’s goats just to tame the yard.

Then comes the summer heat, ah yes!

Everyone loves that crunchy dry noise when they walk out to check the mail while the neighbor casts a judgmental glance from their lush manicured green lawn.

Never mind, they had to drill a well just to water their grass.

Today lush green lawns are becoming passé amongst folks with a sense for preserving water, personal energy and time. After all, you could be doing something much more fun than mowing in circles.

Let’s face it… Grass is a very high maintenance.

No matter your budget, there is hope. While creating a low maintenance landscape will require planning and several hours of intense sweating, the result will save you time, money and create additional living space to relax in, if that is your goal.

When removing grass from your 32 |

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lawn there are two ways to look at it: work harder or work smarter. The most obvious method is to literally dig the grass up, roots and all. Other methods include drenching your yard in herbicide, which, not only kills the grass but can enter water sources and affect the soil for a season, compost and smother, or soil solarization. The latter requires sheets of clear plastic spread over your entire yard and allowing the sun to do the killing for you. The side benefit to this is it also kills pests in the soil, such as nematodes.

Plant pathologist, James J. Stapleton, Ph.D., at the University of California, notes that solarization also increases nutrient availability. Solid materials combined with moisture and heat “create a nice, nutrientrich liquid,” a healthy soup for your future plants.

According to Tina Powell, of Bear Creek Nursery & Landscaping on Highway 23 east of Eureka Springs, Ark., once you have removed the grass, it is best to invest in a quality heavy landscape fabric to create a permanent landscape environment.

Once the thick fabric is laid down, your yard is now your personal canvas to create whatever work of art you envision, that is not only beneficial to pollinating insects but will save you time and money for many years.

More Ozarkian’s are moving towards un-mowing their lawns by arranging gravel in varying colors and sizes creating interesting patterns. Type of rock is a personal preference.

“I like a variety of rocks to define areas,” Tina states. “We have readily available creek gravel, chocolate gravel, and depending on your budget there are nice round pebbles, granite pebbles or Colorado river rock, the options are endless.”

Once you have established the foundation for your yard art, you can then add raised beds filled with plants that suit your fancy. Tina recommends zero scape plants, such as, succulents that require little water and attention or native plants and wildflowers.

Husband Gordon Powell, has been growing and designing landscapes in the Ozarks for almost 30 years. He has gathered knowledge on what deer eat, what requires light, what doesn’t and what goes well together.

Deer typically don’t like herbs, such as: Rosemary, Thyme, Sage, Mint, Oregano, Bee Balm, Lavender and Yarrow. Most of these also require less water and attention.

However, herbs like Lemon Balm should be contained or it will take over.

WHEN YOU CREATE A NATURAL YARD, YOU ALLOW NATURE TO DO MOST OF THE WORK.

“Native plants are the best option because if they do well in a ditch, then they will do well in a low maintenance yard since they are not accustomed to being watered by hand,” Tina adds.

Tina stresses that fabric and mulch will keep grass and weeds from returning with a vengeance. This is where knowledge is key. There are several types of mulches on the market. Typically, most are made of recycled wood, like pallets, that are dyed different colors. Unfortunately, the dye usually fades or bleeds out.

The downside to using recycled wood mulch is it comes from the inside of the tree and requires nitrogen to break down, pulling nitrogen from the soil. Plus, it does not hold moisture and does not perform a function, it is purely decorative.

The Powell’s prefer a hardwood shredded bark, the bark knits together and prevents light from penetrating the soil.

Weed seeds are often carried in the air and tend to require light to germinate.

Wood bark mulch holds moisture and

improves the soil as it breaks down and turns into compost, giving you multiple layers of benefits, plus it looks more natural and appropriate. In the long run, it creates a healthier landscape. However, one misconception is to use landscape fabric under mulch, which will cause problems. You only want to use landscape fabric under rocks.

Some use railroad ties to create raised beds, but they are laced with chemicals and wood frames tends to rot.

One option is heavy fabric containers, like Big Bag Beds, which last longer and are cheaper. They can be washed and put away each winter. They also air prune the roots. Meaning that when the roots grow near the edge of the pot, the air prunes the roots back promoting better growth of the plant, without cooking the roots.

“These things are important because you could spend thousands of dollars buying things that are pretty but if they aren’t going to grow where you’re putting them, it is a waste.” Tina states.

Flowering plants like salvias are good to dissuade deer from munching.

Marigolds, geraniums and herbs also help to keep mosquitos away.

Some people prefer that their yard serve a purpose. Robin Killion, of Anderson, Missouri, chose to create an edible landscape in her grassless yard. Nearly every corner has some sort of edible flora: various fruit trees, herbs, green leafy plants like kale, onions, grapevines and tubers.

“It is lots of work but it has its benefits, like growing your own food and making your land productive,” Robin says.

New trends are pointing to outside living spaces complete with native stone walkways, ponds, patios and fire pits. Eliminating cover means hanging out in nature minus the chiggers, ticks and other little critters whose sole purpose is to bite you.

So, if you are weary of the numbing routine of swatting mosquitos, weed whacking your shins or mowing different designs in your grass just to change it up… you may want to go natural… low maintenance natural.

Your investment of time upfront to remove high maintenance grass from your yard, will save you money and time, easily over eight hours a week, giving you a unique landscape that your neighbors will envy.

When you create a natural yard, you allow nature to do most of the work, freeing you up to the things you enjoy with the people you enjoy.

June • July 2017 | 33

BACK HOME in the HILLS To receive the latest issue of Lightnin' Ridge Outdoor Journal, send five dollars to LROJ, Box 22, Bolivar, MO 65613.

Booch’s Pool Hall

BY LARRY DABLEMONT

I

couldn’t remember the name of the pool hall in Columbia, Mo., just east of the campus. But it was called Booch’s and I recently saw that it was being inducted into the Boone County register of historic places. I think it ought to become a national monument! It is a big part of my history.

Fifty years ago this month I left School of the Ozarks College to transfer to the University of Missouri at Columbia. I had no scholarships. With a 2.3 grade point, I was just lucky they let me in. But there would be some big bills to pay, and I had no money.

The University gave me a 15-hour-aweek job in the Archaeology Department and I was as happy with that as a kid with a rich uncle. I drew a dollar and thirty-five cents an hour. That came to about $70 a month and the first amount M.U. billed me for was $1500, for a dorm room and tuition.

That first week or so I took a walk around the campus and at the east end I found the newspaper office of the Columbian Missourian. I went in and introduced myself as an outdoor newspaper columnist who had been doing outdoor columns for the Houston herald in Texas County and the school newspaper at S. of O. To my surprise, the fellow I talked to, after seeing some of my published columns agreed to let me write a column for his paper at five dollars a week. That raised my income to $90 a month.

But the story really begins with a walk south from the newspaper office; and there 34 |

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it was...one of the best pool halls I had ever seen. I wouldn’t describe it as anything like the one I had worked in as a boy back in my hometown of Houston, Missouri.

That one was owned by my dad and my grandfather, Bert McNew. Dad said I was a part owner too, though not entitled to a vote. I was a couple of months shy of 12-years-old when I started going in after school to relieve my grandfather, who worked there during the day. The idea was, I only had to work there for a couple of hours until dad got home from his shoe-factory job and took over. But he got to liking the idea of going home and having supper with Mom and my sisters and staying longer and longer.

In a year or so I was closing the place up at night and he would come to get me.

Together, Dad and I would sweep up, brush the tables and haul the spittoons out to the back porch, replacing them each night with ones filled with fresh sawdust.

Only on weekends would I stay away, but only when I had city folks to guide on fishing trips down the Piney. I considered that dedication to the river my main job, but I also made money by hunting lost golf balls at the golf course where I could sell them for a quarter apiece. I was pretty good at making money.

When the season for float trips wasn’t right, I would run the pool hall at night on any given Saturday. Grandpa only wanted to be there in the mornings on Saturdays and if dad didn’t take over for him in the early afternoon, I did, because if I wasn’t hunting or fishing, I wanted to be in that pool hall, where all my friends were… men about 60 or 70 years old.

There was one reason I became a heck of a good snooker and pool player.

We had both kinds of tables and the two games are as different as badminton and tennis. I always worried that our family was destitute because Dad grew up during the depression and he was always talking about how, if we didn’t make so much per day in the snooker center we were going to go broke.

We didn’t go broke because if the tables ever were sitting there without a game going on, I talked someone into playing me. If I won we added 20 cents to the money-bag and if I didn’t win then whoever played me left with all his money. Our pool hall didn’t allow gambling, but quite often, when I played someone who I knew I could beat, we would play for a soda, which gained us another dime if I won.

There were some men in that pool hall who were about as good at snooker as you could get. Dad was one of them, and his friend Jimmy Long, well, and Gerald Jeffries.

There was Garnett Sliger and Junior Blair and one of the most colorful and well-known men in our county, Shorty Evans. When I played against them later in my boyhood, at the age of 15 or 16, I didn’t win often, but I learned much about the game by playing against the best in our county.

So that day at the Unversity of Missouri I walked into that pool hall and the owner was there. I told him that I needed a job and that I had been involved in running, managing and advising a big pool hall in the Ozarks since I was a kid. He kind of laughed at me. I was 18 at the time, but I didn’t look it. He said as much, and he also said if I wasn’t just another windbag kid I ought to be able to play a mean game of snooker. He picked up his custom-made cue stick and about 15 minutes later I had him beat by twenty points. We didn’t finish the game, and he asked me what hours I could work.

My dad, in our pool hall in 1959.

When I left, I had another job, working about 20 hours per week at night, from 7 o’clock to 11 or 12, closing the place up and taking the days receipts to the night-deposit slot in the bank just a block or so to the east.

I worked there most of the next two and one-half years while I was at M.U., maybe getting paid about 25 dollars per week, which brought my earnings to about 200 bucks a month. During the spring and fall, week-end float fishing clients back home on the Big Piney brought that up substantially.

But I am a little ashamed of what I did that helped me to see to it the University got enough money to keep them from sending me home. Some of it came from college students, but most of them wised up fast. I didn’t get much of their money after they figured out they weren’t going to win. They figured out what ‘hustling’ means in a pool hall.

But the place was full of black teenagers from Hickman High School who always had money, and though they found out quickly they couldn’t beat me at snooker, they always thought they could beat me in a game of nine-ball, which gamblers choose as their favorite game

because it is a fast game and luck has as much to do with it as skill, or so they thought.

So when the place wasn’t busting at the seams with M.U. students, I played a little nine-ball, and did well. Had a small bank account, even bought myself a ’56 Chevrolet sedan for fifty dollars at Roy Fisher’s salvage yard back in Houston, and a new used model 12 Winchester shotgun for 30 bucks. Times were good.

As someone who knew nothing about those folks who had such darker skin than I, and came from an entirely different culture, I was a little afraid of them. A fear of what you do not know or understand does that to you. But quickly, just like back home in the hills, I made a friend that was much older than I, and he was a black man probably in his late forties.

Maybe the best thing about my job at that pool hall was talking to him, and some of those kids from Hickman High School who quickly became friends. I learned a great deal from those boys. The kids were like those from any high school of course… just kids, most of them with good hearts.

There were some who were common hoodlums. I suppose in any high school, then and now, it was much the same

percentages of good and bad, whether white, black or mixed.

Out of college a few years later, I gave up the game of snooker, eight ball, nine ball; all of them. But when I was eleven years old and started working in my dad’s ‘snooker center’ many of my teachers thought it was an awful thing to do to a boy. In high school, some of the kids got to calling me the pool-hall kid, but I didn’t care. I had a lot of friends, those oldtimers who were so often found there on the front bench.

So in time, I wrote the book, “The Front Bench Regulars” about those men and those great times in that main street pool hall at Houston. In addition I have written more than 200 magazine articles and newspaper articles about those boyhood days in that smoke-filled ‘recreation center’.

My teachers didn’t know I would someday make my living as a story-teller type of writer and speaker. And whether it was good or bad, I paid for three years of education at the University of Missouri with many many hours of work at Booch’s Pool Hall, because of my cue-ball ability gained at Dad’s place, where the front bench regulars gave me advice.

I know that Booch’s place is still going, and I want them to put a plaque up someday on the wall saying, “Larry Dablemont worked here once’t, and played a mean game of snooker right here on the front table.”

But I don’t suppose that will happen.

If you would like to read that book, The Front Bench Regulars” you can get it now via credit card, just by calling Ms. Wiggins, my executive secretary here at our executive offices and telling her I said you could get a discount off regular bookstore prices.

Ask her to send you info on my other eight books, or the magazine we put out we call The Lightnin’ Ridge Outdoor Journal. The phone number is 417-777-5227.

And you know what I am doing this month? I am moving in an antique Brunswick snooker table, one of the best, made nearly a hundred years ago and just like some of them from my boyhood. It will sit right in the middle of my office/museum.

Anyone who wants to come and visit is welcome, if you can get across the creek and up the hill to my place on Lightnin’ Ridge.

You might bring a small bag of quarters and we’ll shoot a little snooker!

June • July 2017 | 35

Eating Weeds THE

STORY AND PHOTOS

BY LAYNE SLEETH

“Let food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food.”

-- Hippocrates, 431 B.C.

It's challenging to give our bodies all of the daily nutrients needed, what with many convenient foods being devoid of nutrient value. But get this -many readily available weeds are some of the most nutrient-packed foods available to us.

Lou Ann posing with a basket of Reishi mushrooms she found on her property 36 |

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Foraging for food is a skill that has faded in juxtaposition with the rise of the convenient grocery store. Certainly, we all look forward to that first juicy tomato of the season, and other annual foods. Yet, we ignore and even abuse wild perennial vegetation. Many try to eradicate invaluable greens from their yards, ceaselessly mowing or using harmful pesticides. Our society is a bit backwards in this regard. The tenacious dandelion is a prime example. They are a prized edible in Europe and across the Mediterranean, where people often steam dandelion greens and serve them with a drizzle of lemon juice and olive oil.

Dandelion flower, leaves, and root can be eaten. As the saying goes, if you can’t beat them, join them!

Lou Ann Nolan, seasoned forager, of Kingston, Ark., has been incorporating wild harvested foods into hers and her

family's diet for 27 years now. She began out of a combination of necessity and want-to, as a resourceful mother of young children. Now Lou Ann works as a fitness instructor for older adults and mixes tonics and tinctures at a local apothecary.

She’s a down-to-earth, humble and generous soul. Lou Ann states that she grew up in a wealthier family, and traveled the world, viewing art and enjoying different cultures – especially their foods. She finds artistic expression in what she creates with wild harvested food. “I love the seasonal surprises,” that bring vim and flavor to the table, says Lou Ann. From her lush acreage, she gathers and stocks her pantry, freezers, and root cellar. "My grandkids love eating this stuff!" she grins. “I just want people to be aware of the abundance of food that is available out there. . . It is a needed skill.”

A comprehensive guide to all of the useful plants beyond your doorstep would be exhaustive. Instead, included here is a handful of the most common edible weeds – ones that Lou Ann finds herself using the most.

Late warm season foraging finds: PERSIMMON FRUITS Eat them in pies, bars, or au natural SUMAC BERRIES Make into "Indian lemonade" WILD BLACKBERRIES Sometimes painful, always rewarding

ACORNS, CHESTNUTS, WALNUTS, HICKORY NUTS, BEECH NUTS All excellent sources of protein and fat PAWPAW TREE FRUITS Celebrate the largest edible fruit native to North America

Other useful common wild edibles: MULLEIN This is a weed to apply medicinally for any sort of respiratory stress in the body.

Rosemary Gladstar, celebrated herbalist, suggests a tea of mullein flower and leaf to benefit the endocrine gland system.

VIOLETS Lovely and delicate, the wild violet usually grows in clumps in shaded areas, or near trees and creek banks. Violet greens can often be found in the Ozarks throughout the winter, and their blooms are a harbinger of spring. They bloom from March to mid-summer and irregularly into the fall. Violets have nutritive value that includes vitamins A, C, E, and many minerals. Toss the heart-shaped leaves and fragile flowers into a green salad. Lou Ann references findings by her personal hero, Euell Gibbons, a well-known author and proponent of wild foods, on the vitamin C content of violet flowers: ". . . these tasty little flowers are three times as rich in vitamin C, weight for weight, as oranges."

Gibbons provides a method on creating a beautifully colorful and floral jam with violet flowers in his book, "Stalking the Healthful Herbs." Lou Ann prefers birds foot violet to make this special jam, as the petals are larger and give way easier as she combs her fingers across the stem.

PLANTAIN Plantain is a good source of omega-3 fatty acids -- 24 milligrams per cup. It also contains vitamins A, C, protein, phosphorus and potassium. Lou Ann recommends that if you get an insect sting or a chigger, pull up some plantain leaf and rub it on the fresh ailment to take itch or sting out.

PURSLANE Apparently purslane was grown and eaten by ancient Egyptians. It grows in pretty poor soils, but tastes mighty fine.

DOCK Dock is a tasty and leafy addition to any dish. Or get crazy and make some dock chips in the oven (like kale chips, only better).

Fun Fact:

Thomas Jefferson grew 330 varieties of more than 70 different kinds of vegetables, though he seemed to have a particular fondness for perennial crops.

June • July 2017 | 37

DANDELIONS The hardy and sunny dandelion is found absolutely everywhere. It’s a true survivalist. Like many of North America’s “weedy” plants, it’s likely that dandelion seeds were brought over on the Mayflower because of their nutritional and medicinal benefit known to Europeans. Dandelion flowers are a colorful addition to salads, as well. The greens are a bit zippy, but are more palatable when mixed with other milder greens. Don't forget time-honored dandelion wine either. The plant contains vitamins A, C, iron, calcium, phosphorus, thiamine, riboflavin, and potassium.

Not only that, but the deep taproots actually bring up calcium and other nutrients from deep within the soil and make these nutrients available for other nearby plants. Hey, the dauntless dandelion is not such a bad ally in the garden after all.

ELDERBERRIES Elderberry and elder flower have been shown to have powerful antiviral properties. Elder products are extremely popular on pharmacy shelves in Europe, as they stimulate the immune system. This large shrub contains vitamins C and A,

Lou Ann serves up a feast worthy of Hobbits: elderflower cordial, squash biscuits topped with homemade cream cheese, pesto, venison, and watercress with a warm bowl of watercress soup.

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iron, potassium among other nutrients. It likes to grow in rich soil and partial shade to full sun conditions. Some suggest frying the delicate, white clusters of flowers into fritters and serving them with elderberry syrup drizzled on top. One of Lou Ann's favorite ways to serve up elder is a refreshing elderflower cordial -- just make a simple syrup with the elder flowers and add to a glass of ice water, garnished with a sprig of mint. Yum!

MINTS Mints are prolific and come in many, many varieties. It is a large and fragrant family that grows nearly anywhere that has somewhat moist and well-drained soils. In biblical times, the Pharisees paid their tithes in mint, which speaks to the esteem and importance of this wild food. Mint is energizing and refreshing to the body and mind. Constituents include calcium, magnesium and potassium to name a few. One can use mint in myriad ways -- make mint jelly, teas, salads, or add to any meal or beverage.

You'll want to avoid eating raw berries in volume, because they can cause upset stomach. Syrups, wines, jams, jellies, and pies made from elderberry, however, are some of the best tasting treats out there.

Dandelion Wine recipe from Billy Joe Tatum’s Wild Foods Field Guide and Cookbook Ingredients: 2 quarts freshly picked dandelion flowers in full bloom, washed and with all parts of the stem removed 4 quarts water 1 teaspoon ground or finely cut wild ginger root 2 seedless oranges, pulverized in an electric blender, peel and all 1 lemon, seeded and pulverized in an electric blender, peel and all 6 cups sugar 1 envelope dry yeast 1/2 cup lukewarm water Directions: Combine dandelion flowers, water, ginger, oranges, lemon, and sugar in a large enameled kettle, bring to a boil, cover, lower heat, and simmer for 1 hour.

Strain into a 2-gallon crock through several layers of dampened cheesecloth.

Cool until you can comfortably put a finger into the juice. Dissolve yeast in lukewarm water and add to crock.

Let mixture stand for 1 week, undisturbed, with the crock covered with cheesecloth. Strain wine and pour into bottles, filling them just to the base of the neck. Store bottles unsealed for 4 weeks, covered with a cloth. Cork bottles and store at least until Christmas for full flavor. Decant the wine before serving it.

LAMB’S QUARTERS The tasty little green lambs quarter is quite a treat! You can add lambs quarter leaves to any dish to add some greenery – pastas, eggs, casseroles, curries, green salads, sautéed in butter atop meat dishes and so on. Lambs quarter is packed with calcium, vitamins A, B, C, iron, protein, potassium, and niacin. They like disturbed earth and sun, but will grow in nearly any habitat. Lambs quarters is in the same family as beets, quinoa, spinach and chard.

Sometimes it is called pigweed, a name also used for wild amaranth. Pluck off the top two inches of tender greens and enjoy!

WATERCRESS “I eat watercress every day when it’s in season,” says Lou Ann. Watercress has a delightful crisp texture and peppery taste, much akin to arugula. This Queen of Greens, watercress, is chock-full of potassium, protein, vitamins A, C, E, K, B 6, zinc, calcium, magnesium, phosphorous and manganese. You'll find watercress growing in unspoiled streams in large clumps. It is very pleasant to add to sandwiches, or to blend up into a creamy green soup.

It's important to take note of where you harvest. Don't harvest downstream of livestock animals or polluted roadways. Of course, don't harvest on private property without landowner permission first.

Equip yourself with a basket, scissors, and curiosity (and a reliable field guide perhaps). “I just want everyone to get out there and try foraging,” explains Lou Ann. Odds are, you'll get a at least a little satisfaction out of the venture of walking out your door and gathering food.

Disclaimer: None of the statements on medical application of these plants have been evaluated by the FDA, neither are they intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Lou Ann Nolan is not making any medical claims. Additionally, be 100% positive on identification of any plant before consuming it. Eat small amounts at first, as some people have food allergies.

June • July 2017 | 39

Good For You

BEAT THE HEAT

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laying and working in the summer sun is one of the joys of living in this beautiful region. Working, building, recreating, swimming and camping are all perfect summertime activities. With our possible intense heat and humidity, though – it is important to always keep in mind that becoming overheated and dehydrated can be dangerous. One of the best ways to keep your body working at its best is to keep hydrated.

If you are working outside or exercising, you increase your need to keep hydrated.

Losing internal fluids through sweating can cause more rapid dehydration, making the need to keep liquids at hand very important.

Dehydration can cause headaches as well as muscle aches and fatigue. It can also increase the risk of getting kidney stones and lowering blood pressure to unsafe levels. If working in the heat, dehydration can lead to heat exhaustion…which can quickly escalate to heat stroke if not treated. Find a cool place to rest and replenish your body with fluids if you have any of these symptoms: confusion, dizziness, fainting, fatigue, headache, muscle or abdominal cramps, nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea, pale skin, profuse sweating or rapid heartbeat. Call your doctor if these symptoms do not subside after cooling off and hydrating within an hour.

INFUSED WATER Drinking plenty of fluids is important to keep your body functioning well in the summer heat. Infused waters made utilizing in season fruits and vegetables is a great way to turn plain water into a tasty tonic that will add nutrients without added sugar.

A simple and refreshing combination is fresh mint and cucumber.

Wash a fresh cucumber and slice or cube it.

Wash a handful of mint

leaves and tear to help them emit juices. Place mint and cucumber into a glass pitcher and fill

with water. Place in refrigerator. Water can be replenished to refill pitcher for up to 5 days.

HERE ARE A FEW OTHER COMBINATIONS FOR VARIETY. Use about one-cup of each ingredient (sliced or chunked, unless it's a spice or strong flavor): ROSEMARY (2 sprigs)/LEMON PEAR/GINGER (fresh, 1 Tbsp. grated)/CINNAMON (2 sticks) STRAWBERRY/JALAPENO (just one pepper, seeds removed) LEMON/LIME/CUCUMBER, LEMON/BLUEBERRY BLACKBERRY/LAVENDER (a sprig with fresh blooms) BLACKBERRY/PEACH STRAWBERRY/BASIL (handful of leaves)/CUCUMBER ...really the possibilities are endless!

Specializing in land, ranches and farms Office licensed in Missouri and Oklahoma Member of two Multi-list Systems

417.226.3363

obrienrealty.biz 40 |

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Donnie & Tammy O’Brien, agent/owners 26 Peacock Lane, Jane, MO

FUN-ADES & TEAS Summer is a great time to keep lemonade and other fruit-ades and teas on hand for playing kids and get-togethers. Lower the amount of sugar to suite your taste or nutritional needs, and remember to drink plenty of water and non-sweetened drinks along with these sweet and tasty drinks.

Elegant Peach Party Tea

Homemade Blackberry Lemonade Ingredients: blackberry simple syrup 1 cup blackberries 1/2 cup water 1/2 cup granulated sugar lemonade 1 pkg. lemonade mix (like Koolaid) 1 cup sugar 1/2 cup blackberry syrup 1/2 cup lemon juice, fresh-squeezed To make blackberry simple syrup, combine 1 cup fresh or frozen blackberries, water and sugar in a medium-sized saucepan over medium-high heat until mixture comes to a boil and sugar has dissolved completely. Remove from heat then set aside to cool.

Once mixture has cooled, strain through a sieve, discarding the pulp and seeds. This should yield about 1½ cups of blackberry syrup.

To make lemonade, combine lemonade mix, ½ cup syrup and lemon juice in a large pitcher. Stir well to ensure ingredients have combined completely. Serve in glasses filled with ice. Present with lemon slices and fresh blackberries.

Ingredients: 3 family-size tea bags 2 cups loosely packed fresh mint leaves 1 (33.8-oz.) bottle peach nectar 1 (6-oz.) can frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed 1/2 cup Sugar 1-liter bottle ginger ale, chilled 1-liter bottle club soda, chilled Garnish: fresh peach wedges Bring 4 cups water to a boil in a medium saucepan; add tea bags and mint leaves. Boil 1 minute, remove from heat. Cover and steep 10 minutes. Discard tea bags and mint. Pour into a 1-gal.

Container. Add peach nectar, lemonade concentrate, and Sugar.

Cover and chill 8 to 24 hours.

Pour chilled tea mixture into a punch bowl or pitcher. Stir in ginger ale and club soda just before serving. Garnish, if desired.

June • July 2017 | 41

Repurposing Revolution

Purposeful Repurpose

It's fun to take things that have been discarded as trash or unusable and make something out of them that you can really enjoy looking at. And it's a lot of fun to make things out of junk.

– Nancy Rubino

R

ecycling items is sometimes a habit that is nurtured early in life. Growing up on a farm, I saw my parents repurposing items into something usable and needed many times. My dad was a welder as well, so metal was always used, re-used...and used again! I think a concept that my parents passed on to me is that it takes energy and skill to make those things, and they should be used until they can't be used anymore. It's wasteful not to, and it's never good to needlessly waste something.

I asked some folks to share why they repurpose, and we are sharing them here. This column was inspired by a letter we received from Marla Johnson-Ozbun in Sulphur Springs, Ark. Thank you for your letter and story Marla:

Saving Souvenirs I live in Northwest Arkansas, but every now and then I get an urge to venture south, down through the Arkansas hills. Maybe it's my Texas roots beckoning me that direction, though I seldom get that far anymore, not since Mom died.

On a recent southerly excursion, I visited the Mena area, taking in the splendid scenery and making special note of the secondhand stores – that's where I shop for “souvenirs” that will later remind me of various trips.

In a resale store along highway 71 there in Mena, I spied a dingy old lamp.

Quite small, heavy for its size, minus the shade, and decorated with crudely handpainted flowers. For some illogical reason, I found it totally charming.

Since the price was unmarked, I figured it might be worth about five dollars, and the proprietor asked exactly that price for it. When I took it to my car and stowed it away, the aged coating on the electrical cord

crumbled away like dust, seeding the trunk with chalky rubble. Obviously it would need rewiring.

To quote my sister, Lenora, “Rewiring old lamps is a cinch!” Sure enough, the process was fairly straightforward. I salvaged a cord and plug from another (newer!) secondhand lamp, and paid utmost attention to the sequence of parts during disassembly. Before long – TWINK! BLINK! - the souvenir lamp glowed brightly.

I felt a satisfying glow as well – a sense of accomplishment at having rescued the lamp and restored its purpose – Ozark resourcefulness, at your service. The project wasn't arduous; the investment of time, money, and material was minimal.

Here's where the story takes a turn.

Suddenly, and inexplicably, my reverie shifted gears. My emotions began to travel in a totally unforeseen direction. I began to think of the astounding investment

I like reusing old things because they are so much better made than current materials available. I know when I make something out of older materials, it will continue to stand the test of time. Plus, I try never to take away from the item's original purpose so it could still be used the way it was originally intended, if need be.

– Christi Eden Christi has beautifully repurposed many decorative items in her home, including old barn doors and wash tubs which now sort dirty laundry.

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of time (aeons), money (it's all his), and material (the body of his son) that the Lord God uses to fix human lamps through the conduit of the Holy Spirit.

How utterly thankful I am that wherever I was when Jesus found me, he wanted dingy, crumbling, self-painted me as a souvenir of his visit.

Thus my feeling of satisfaction at having fixed the souvenir lamp was neatly put in perspective. Imagine the sweet feeling God must have when his work of redemption salvages and illuminate a life.

“For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” II Cor. 4:6 – Marla Johnson-Ozbun

Rags to Riches Flea Market 16,000 square feet of antiques, collectibles and much more!

113 West Main Street, Anderson MO 64831 (417) 845-7383 M-F 10:00-5:00 Sat 9:00-4:00

www.rags2richesfleamarket.com Here on the farm, we keep a lot of old things in storage – you never know what you may need.

We call it getting the squeal out of the pig, ha...which we have done a lot and saved a lot of money.

It's mainly repairing things, we never throw bailing wire away – you can't run a farm without bailing wire. All kinds of hardware, used lumber, metal, we always need something for different uses.

– Howard Nelson

I just love taking something old and use it in a different way from its original use and the decorating aspect of it also is a plus.

– Jenny Thomas

SKILLED NURSING CARE AND COMPREHENSIVE REHABILITATION SERVICES

ROARING RIVER HEALTH AND REHAB

812 Old Exeter Rd., Cassville, MO 417-847-2185

All Roads Lead Home

MARK YOUR CALENDARS! Join us for Light the Night June 19 Baldwin Park, Aurora, MO. 1 p.m. with Fireworks at 9:20p.m. Events include: Houn Dawg Baseball Games, Hot Air Balloon Glow Display (weather permitting), Bingo, Food, Bands, Games for the kids and more!

Admission is FREE!!

If you’re in Barry County, I’m for you.

Chad Yarnall (417) 847-3399

The 9th Annual Mustang Mania & All Ford Car Show will be held June 17 at Jimmy Michel Motors on the corner of Business Hwy. 60 & Hwy. 39 in Aurora. Many classes of Mustangs, Ford and Ford trucks to be showcased, registration will begin at 8 a.m.

An entry fee of $15 is required the day of the show. Dash Plaques to the first 35 entries.

Jenny's grandaughter, Jaylee, helped her grandma create this gnome garden while using old buckets, pots and an old washtub and milk can.

Aurora Chamber of Commerce

121 E. Olive, Aurora, Missouri 417-678-4150

www.auroramochamber.com

June • July 2017 | 43

June 17th 7pm

Carthage, MO

THE NIGHT OF THE HORSE Risen Ranch Cowboy Church FREE PERFORMANCE

with professional horsemen: Johnie Clem Elizabeth Brook Becky Shelton Jennifer Beyer Amanda Reese

Spon Sp ons nso soorre red ed by by:

trick roper: Josh Orr trick rider: Shayleigh Sanches vocalist: Teresa Jameson pastor: Steve Stafford

Becky Shelton FREE fo f r Most Imp m rove mp ed Rider!

&

Amanda Reese

Horsemanship Clinic $375 June 17-18, 2017

Focus on improving your horsemanship through personal instruction by NRHA judge, competitor and trainer Becky Shelton, and speaker, writer and trainer, Amanda Reese. Spectator fee $20. Clinic limited to 10 riders.

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Call Janice at a (417) 669-6062 to register

HOME Sweet HOME

All the homes listed in this issue are homes nestled on the countryside with acreage If you are living in the Ozarks paradise, might as well find the home of your dreams too, right? Here are a few country homes in the area to get your search started.

Foothills Estate

Dream Ranch

A beautiful country drive will take you to this grey brick home with more than 4,000 square feet, the floor plan will fulfill all your living and entertaining needs. Beautiful country views surround this home that also has 7 acres of fenced pasture, ready for horses or a small herd of cattle.

It has an above ground pool, 2-car garage and large detached workshop, spacious man-cave with glass doors large enough to drive a car through, among other amenities. This rural estate is located in central Barry County, Missouri, and an easy distance to Northwest Arkansas and Springfield.

Rob Lotufo 417-319-4367 A-List Properties Premier, Monett, Missouri

Fresh air and serenity surround this 223-acre ranch located in the beautiful, quiet countryside just west of Monett, Missouri. This home and property is Century Home registered with the University of Missouri Extension – and the first time it has been on the open market. This is a working farm with 7 ponds, wet weather spring, hayfields, good fence and welded pipe corral, among other shops and buildings. Gentle rolling acreage with walnut trees, and a great combination of pasture and trees.

Need to relax? It also has an inground pool!

Julie Vaughn 417-365-1190 A-List Properties Premier in Monett, Missouri

Beautiful Home on the Prairie

Creekside Country Cottage

Sit around the firepit in the backyard facing a beautiful woods and pasture at this sweet home near Pierce City, Missouri. With 80-acres, it's the perfect size for a family farm...and already equipped with barns and sheds. With a spacious home and a beautifully landscaped yard, you will be pleased to call this home sweet home.

Julie Vaughn 417-365-1190 A-List Properties Premier in Monett, Missouri

This cute flagstone home is nestled along the hillside just up the country road from Flat Creek, which is a busy stream for area swimmers, fishers and kayakers. It is also near area icon, Ash Cave, that sits right alongside Y Hwy., and has intrigued explorers for generations. Built in 1938, this sweet little 1100 square foot cottage comes with 31 acres, a chicken house, a 2 car detached garage and workshop. Located just northeast of Cassville and in the Cassville school district.

Julie Vaughn 417-365-1190 A-List Properties Premier in Monett, Missouri

If you have a unique property that you would like to the perfect buyer for, contact us at ozarkhillsandhollows@gmail.com 417-652-3083

June • July 2017 | 45

Enjoying Life on our Family Farm

H

BY KATRINA WILLIAMSON

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ave you ever just looked up toward the deep, dark cosmic abyss and gazed at all the stars twinkling back down to you?

Last night, my husband and I came home from church late, and when we got out of the car, my husband said he would show me where the Big Dipper was – if I wanted him to. Of course, I said yes, because I always seem to get it wrong. We stopped where we were and looked up to the sky and became mesmerized by the little jewels shining so bright on the night canvas. He pointed out the big dipper to me and our littlest son. We just stood there with our heads looking up toward the heavens for just a moment. Our farm is way out in the country where we have very little light pollution, and the stars

just shimmer like little diamonds in the sky. We stood there, quiet and at peace, for a long while. That is one of the many reasons I love living in the country on our family farm. We couldn’t hear anything but the frogs peep and croak in the far distance, and the wind blowing through the trees. We all were as content as we could be.

Where I work, we had a training that we were all required to attend a few months back. The trainer began by asking us where we worked, our years of service with the department, and “if you could be anywhere else in the world at this very moment, where would you want to be.” Most everyone said they would want to be on a beach somewhere or in some foreign, exotic country. I thought about their comments, and

rush out of the house and run to the field and take care of a cow that was down, when we first got married. I didn’t understand the urgency. Now I do the same thing.

Farming is not only a form of income for us, but it is a lifestyle we have chosen.

I agree, it would be nice to be on the beach somewhere or in some random country overseas, but to be honest, I would not want to be anywhere else except on our farm. I love to be at home on our farm. I am content with working in the yard, taking care of my chickens, or just admiring the animals as they eat the fresh, green, tender grass. There is nothing better than sitting in my yard, swinging to my heart’s content.

Farming is not only a form of income for us, but it is a lifestyle we have chosen. I was not raised on farm, but I got here has fast as I could. I married into the farm life 20 years ago, and even though it was quite an adjustment from the city life, I have loved every minute of it. I remember wondering why my husband would

The other night we got home real late in the evening and I was exhausted from the events of the day. I went to bed and forgot to close my chicken coop door. About four in the morning, I heard our guinea start to fire up.

When Sam gets excited he sounds likes a siren screeching to warn all who is there to listen. I woke from a sound sleep and listened and he did it again.

I then heard the other chickens start to cackle, but I knew by the sound of it that something was wrong. Something was trying to get to my chickens. So I jumped out of bed, threw some clothes on, and found my phone so I would have a flash light. I ran outside and noticed that the guinea and one of the hens were out of the coop. I counted them all and thank goodness, they were all there. Here we are, me and my husband, out in our yard at four in the morning, chasing one of the hens all around the yard so we can put her back in the coop with the other chickens.

I chuckled at the scene. Two people in the middle of the yard, in disheveled bed clothes, flashlights in hand, and running around like mad men, chasing a little hen, that has no intention to be caught. So this is where twenty years has brought me, rushing out of the house to rescue the animals that I vowed to protect, just like my husband has been doing for years. I realized that is what farm life is like. These animals that we raise, do not only serve as a source of income, but they are a part of our family. Living on a farm is a labor of love. If you have never been in the presence of little calves running around so happy and care free, you have not lived life to the fullest.

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June • July 2017 | 47

Sunday mornings my husband spends his morning in the front yard with his cup of fresh brewed coffee in hand, observing and inspecting the cows. He just stands there and talks to the cows and I swear they are just leaning on his every word.

I am not really sure why it is, but the cows will come by the yard fence just about every Sunday morning before we leave for church. It is like they are there to be say good morning and to tell us to have a delightful Sunday afternoon. This last Sunday, I joined him for a little bit.

The temperature was perfect and all the little calves were gathered around. We just stood there side by side, talking and admiring the cows nibble on the freshly grown grass.

I know farm life is not for everyone.

We get questions a lot about how we can live so far off out in the “boondocks.” They wonder how we get by without having a grocery store five minutes from our house. They wonder why we bother raising animals when it is “just too much work.”

I sort of understand why they think this way. I was in the same mind-set a little over 20 years ago. I lived in a city till I was 18 years old, but my husband has lived the majority of his 42 years on a farm. For 23 years, he lived on a farm much larger than ours. His family lived on a 1000 acre cattle farm, although our farm is slightly smaller, only 77 acres, he’s just as content.

My husband lived in town with me when our older two kids were just babies, and hated every moment of it. I was not too fond of it myself, but it was something I was accustom to. After living on farm for the last several years, I could never go back to city living.

I have grown at ease to the serene environment that has encompassed me.

Farm life has become my life. There are approximately 2 million farms that dot America’s rural landscape. According to the Department of Agriculture, about 97 percent of U.S. farms are operated by families. These families can consist of individuals, family partnerships, or family corporations. Some of these farms are thousands of acres, but many are less than a hundred. The world needs farmers. Whether it is a cattle farm, a crop farm, or a little bit of both, the world relies on the farmer.

In 1978, Paul Harvey couldn’t have described a farmer any better. Here is the profound words from his “So God Made a Farmer” Speech.

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A

nd on the 8th day, God looked down on his planned paradise and said, “I need a caretaker.” So God made a farmer.

God said, “I need somebody willing to get up before dawn, milk cows, work all day in the fields, milk cows again, eat supper and then go to town and stay past midnight at a meeting of the school board.” So God made a farmer.

“I need somebody with arms strong enough to rustle a calf and yet gentle enough to deliver his own grandchild. Somebody to call hogs, tame cantankerous machinery, come home hungry, have to wait lunch until his wife’s done feeding visiting ladies and tell the ladies to be sure and come back real soon — and mean it.” So God made a farmer.

God said, “I need somebody willing to sit up all night with a newborn colt. And watch it die. Then dry his eyes and say, ‘Maybe next year.’ I need somebody who can shape an ax handle from a persimmon sprout, shoe a horse with a hunk of car tire, who can make harness out of haywire, feed sacks and shoe scraps. And who, planting time and harvest season, will finish his forty-hour week by Tuesday noon, then, pain’n from ‘tractor back,’ put in another seventy-two hours.” So God made a farmer.

God had to have somebody willing to ride the ruts at double speed to get the hay in ahead of the rain clouds and yet stop in mid-field and race to help when he sees the first smoke from a neighbor’s place. So God made a farmer.

God said, “I need somebody strong enough to clear trees and heave bails, yet gentle enough to tame lambs and wean pigs and tend the pink-combed pullets, who will stop his mower for an hour to splint the broken leg of a meadow lark. It had to be somebody who’d plow deep and straight and not cut corners. Somebody to seed, weed, feed, breed and rake and disc and plow and plant and tie the fleece and strain the milk and replenish the selffeeder and finish a hard week’s work with a five-mile drive to church.

“Somebody who’d bale a family together with the soft strong bonds of sharing, who would laugh and then sigh, and then reply, with smiling eyes, when his son says he wants to spend his life ‘doing what dad does.'” So God made a farmer.

I have a great appreciation for those who choose agriculture as their way of life. It is hard work and you need to be dedicated, and it is not a lifestyle everyone chooses. I have learned a long

time ago that it takes all kinds of people to make this world go round’, I am just happy to be one of those individuals who choose to go round’ this world...on a farm.

The Tree

WRITTEN BY LARRY WHITELEY, LOCAL AUTHOR AND RADIO PERSONALITY

I

was on my way to work when I saw it. I am sure I’ve seen it lots of other times. It was just a glimpse as I drove by.

Why did it bother me so much then? It was just a bulldozer knocking over a tree. That happens all the time in today’s world. We have to have more convenience stores, banks, and shopping centers don’t we?

People have always cleared fields of trees. They did it to grow crops or raise cattle so they could feed their families. The trees were used for firewood to keep them warm. Now, they push over trees and just burn them to get rid of them. When the shopping centers are done, they take their families there to feed them.

What really amazes me is to see developers clear the land of trees for a new housing complex and then watch as the people that buy the houses go to the local home improvement store or nursery to spend hundreds of dollars on small trees to plant in their yards that will take years to grow as big as those that were once there.

As I kept driving, I tried to think about what I needed to get done when I got to my cabin surrounded by the woods of the Mark Twain National Forest. I tried to listen to what the guy on the radio was saying. It didn’t do any good. I kept seeing the bulldozer pushing over the tree. Why couldn’t I get it out of my mind? It was just a tree.

Maybe it bothered me so much this time because I’m getting older and wiser. Well, older anyway. My mind took me back to when I was a kid growing up on the farm. I would spend all day wandering around in the woods. The trees hid me from all the Indians that were after me. I dodged their arrows as I ran from tree to tree. My imagination entertained me back then. I didn’t need TV, video games or a smart phone. Thank God my kids grew up enjoying the woods. Now my grandkids are discovering the wonder of the woods, climbing trees, and carving initials.

Other days, I would climb up into a trees comforting arms and soak in the wonder of the woods or just daydream. I can still remember the odd shape, a weird knot, the feel of the bark on certain trees. I wonder if some of those trees are still there? I wonder if my initials are still carved in them?

As I got older, I would head to the woods with my dog Bo

and my little single shot .22 bought with money I had earned. I still have that gun and the memories of knowing I only had one shot so I couldn’t miss when that squirrel ran out on a limb.

Besides, we didn’t have a lot of extra money to be buying more .22 shells. Sometimes that squirrel was supper.

I still enjoy hiking in the woods. I still climb trees but now it’s to sit in a treestand waiting for a deer to walk by. My granddaughter poses for pictures on a grapevine swing. My grandson loves to hunt squirrels and deer. I smile as I watch them and I remember.

What was that the guy on the radio just said? “And he created the heavens and the earth.” He created all the trees too didn’t he?

It shouldn’t be bothering me about seeing that tree pushed down. After all, I cut down trees too don’t I? Their wood keeps our cabin warm during the cold of winter. They are also magically transformed into candle holders, lamps, coat racks and lots of other things in my workshop.

I am wise enough to know that if your home is shaded by trees, your air conditioner won’t run as much and you’ll save money on electricity. You might even be able to open your windows and enjoy a fresh breeze. Cleaning the gutter and raking leaves is a small price to pay.

Even my 10-year old grandson can tell you that the more trees you cut down, the less oxygen you have. Oxygen – you know the stuff that helps you breathe. I read somewhere that a single tree is valued at over $13,000 during its lifetime for the oxygen it provides. Multiply that times the number of trees in your yard, if you have trees in your yard.

Trees also are important to the wildlife that use them. Birds and squirrels build nests, turkeys roost, deer rub, woodpeckers peck. Most of them feed on the acorns, walnuts, hickories, berries, and insects they provide. Those trees mean so much to them.

I pull into my cabin and a song is playing on the radio. As I listen, I’m not upset anymore. The words roll over in my mind as I look around at all the trees. “He grew the tree that he knew would be used to make the old rugged cross.” You see, that was the most important tree of all.

June • July 2017 | 49

FIBER ARTS

From the Alpaca to the Loom

weavi ng yarn naturally STORY AND PHOTOS BY BECKIE BLOCK

I

n the days of our ancestors, nearly all items were hand made.

People didn’t just go to the store and buy everything they needed, they worked to create it. In this day and time, most goods are

mass produced and by-products are included in everything. Chemicals are used in manufacturing, leading to more and more people having allergies to products from food to clothing. Because of this, people are becoming more interested in knowing what they are putting in, and on their bodies. People are moving away from the lifestyle of having it all, and wanting to get back to a simpler time.

Jonee Davis is a fiber artist, who raises alpaca and harvests their fleece, using it to spin thread, and weave products that are both beautiful and useful. “There is a trend that is going on, like gardening,” Jonee said. “People want to know where their things come from.”

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“There is a lot of interest in fiber arts,” Jonee stated. “People are wanting to go back to a more natural way, to go back to the way it used to be.” Jonee and her husband Don, of Wheaton, Missouri, have a small herd of alpaca. “We raise them for the fleece, but also because they are fun to watch.”

Alpacas are part of the camel family, but are smaller than llamas.

They are native to South America, but are domesticated and becoming more prevalent in the Midwest. There are many different colors of alpaca, which creates many differing colors of fleece in its natural form.

“Many people complain about being allergic to wool,” Jonee shared. “But what they are allergic to is the processing when it’s manufactured.” She went on to say that every breed of sheep has a different type of fiber, as does camel, and alpaca. “What people don’t always know,” she added, “is that alpaca are hypoallergenic.”

from the animal to the loom The normal schedule of shearing the alpaca is in May. “We don’t shear them until they are a year old,” Jonee shared. When the alpaca is sheared there are three sections, which create three different grades of fleece. The premier section is up over the back and to the flank. This creates the highest quality of fleece that is normally the cleanest. The second cut is the neck, butt and upper leg. The final cutting is the belly and the lower leg.

This creates the lowest quality fleece and generally is used for tree mulch.

Raw fleece is very dirty, and the first step it goes through after shearing is “skirting,” which mean to be picked through. Small sections are taken, and all vegetation is picked out of it, and it is then washed and left to dry. There are several steps that come next, as the fleece must be carded.

Carding tools look like boards with nails hammered through them to look like brushes. This separates the fibers and takes tangles out, and enables any remaining vegetation to be removed.

After the carding process the fleece is then combed. The combing process leaves the fleece clean and fluffy.

“Because it’s such a long process,” said Jonee, “a lot of spinners, myself included, buy fleece, or send ours to be prepared.”

After the fleece is completely clean, carded and combed, Jonee sits down at her spinning wheel, and taking small clumps at a time, she proceeds to spin it into threads.

After the threads are complete, she dyes them.

“There are two types of dyes,” Jonee shared. “There is acid dye, which is the use of chemicals and then there is natural dye.” She went on to explain that many products can be used to create natural dyes. Beets, beet tops, black beans, mullein, red onion skins, oranges, and red cabbage leaves are some of the common ones used. “I can get anywhere from gray to purple,” she admitted. “Blues and greens take a chemical dye.”

Dyeing takes a lot of practice, and not all things work out as planned. “Not all things of nature are colorfast,” Jonee said. “There is a difference between city water and well water, and how the colors react.” She also shared that it can be difficult to replicate the same exact colors. “If you are going to dye your yarn, dye enough for the entire project, because you may never get that exact color again.”

Most of her dyeing is done either in a crock pot, on the stove top, or just in a coldwater soak. After the yarn dries, Jonee takes it to one of her three looms, and there she creates different projects. She has made shawls, scarves, towels and many other projects.

She also takes the finer threads and crochets lace.

“PEOPLE ARE WANTING TO GO BACK TO A MORE NATURAL WAY, TO GO BACK TO THE WAY IT USED TO BE.” JONEE DAVIS

teaching her craft to others Jonee travels to different art events and teaches aspects of her craft to others. She has taught Natural Dye demonstrations at Har-Ber Village in Oklahoma. She teaches up to 4 classes wherever she is asked to go: Learning to Twine, Weaving on a frame, Crochet Lace and using a Peg Loom. She is a member of the guild, Fiber Folks of Southwest Missouri, which has 75 members. She also attends Fiber Daze in Mt. Vernon, Mo., each September and will do demo classes there. “Fiber arts is not a new thing in this area,” Jonee said.

Jonee teaches her craft in five different states, at different festivals.

So far she has taught in Tennessee, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Arkansas and all over Missouri. She is also willing to teach private classes in her home if someone really has a desire to learn.

protecting her flock Alpaca are very vulnerable to predators, especially at night.

Jonee has several guardian dogs that she keeps in with the alpaca. Great Pyrenees are well known for guarding livestock.

Anatolian shepherds, Komondor and a Labrador round out her alpaca guardians. The dogs monitor the perimeter of the 80 acres that the Davis’ own, and are able to go from field to field.

Jonee also raises meat goats and chickens and the guardian dogs keep predators away from those as well.

“We just have our little farm here,” she concluded. “I wouldn’t trade my life, or my alpacas for anything.”

June • July 2017 | 51

What do I do with Eggplant?

BY ROB LOTUFO

I

live in the beautiful Ozarks of southwest Missouri, but many of my fondest food memories take me back to my Italian American roots up north. I’m always surprised at how many people grow eggplant, but are at a loss for ways to prepare it. Of course you can cut it up, roll it in flour or meal and fry it. Breaded medallions, fried, then baked in tomato sauce with melted mozzarella cheese “Parmesan” is one of the most popular dishes for eggplant. Here are a couple of more unusual recipes, that I think bring out the subtle flavor and unique texture of this classic summer vegetable.

EGGPLANT BUYING AND GROWING GUIDE:

Eggplant Parmesan is a favorite way to eat and prepare this beautiful summer vegetable.

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Eggplant come in many bulbous shapes and sizes. It may be best to think about the recipe that you will be using for the eggplant in deciding which variety to choose. Flavor distinction among the different varieties is not great – primarily the difference is in the shape, color and size, as well as texture and seeds. They are a beautiful plant and grow well all over the Ozarks. They are usually always bothered by the flea beetles that wreck havoc with their foliage throughout the season.

Here are a few different kinds of eggplant that can be found growing and for sale in area markets.

Grilled Eggplant medallions Caprese This could be a main course with a simple pasta dish, or a hearty appetizer. Tasty and seasonal, find a source for fresh, local mozzarella and you have a local entree that will be hard to beat.

Grilled Eggplant Caponata A great summer appetizer with a smoky grilled twist. This is a wonderful way to start off a summer off the grill meal. Serve caponata with toast points, or fresh sliced french bread.

BLACK BEAUTY This is the standard market eggplant that has been around for years.

These large pear shaped fruits are great for large grilled or fried eggplant slices. It also works well for just about any use.

EASTER EGG These little white egg shaped fruits are great for grilling in the skin.

Just halve and grill. Flesh can be scooped out easily after it’s cooked.

Quick Vinaigrette

ORIENTAL CHARM Chinese and Japanese eggplant varieties are a thinner fruit that comes in various colors and have a small seed chamber. These are great for pickling and stirfry.

1/4 cup olive oil 1 tsp. minced garlic 1/8 cup balsamic vinegar 1/2 tsp. salt 1/4 tsp. coarse ground black

pepper 1/8 tsp. oregano 1 tsp. minced garlic 1/4 tsp. anchovie paste

Heat the oil and garlic in a glass measuring cup for 20 seconds in the microwave. Add the remaining ingredients and whisk until blended.

Drizzle over your platter.

June • July 2017 | 53

Pickled Eggplant Grilled Eggplant Caponata A great summer appetizer with a smoky grilled twist 1 Large Eggplant 1/8 cup table salt 1/8 cup olive oil for the onions 1 Medium onion 1 Bulb garlic 1 small jar of Capers

1/4 cup minced Sun Dried Tomatoes 1/2 cup Olive Oil 1/4 cup Balsamic vinegar 1 Tbsp. Anchovy paste 1 tsp. sea salt 1/2 tsp. Coarse ground Black Pepper

Slice the eggplant into 1/4” thick planks, lengthwise. Salt generously, place in a colander to drain.

Fire up the grill to medium heat. Slice the onion into 1/4” rings, make a flat packet of these out of tin foil, sprinkle with olive oil, seal the edges and put it on the grill. Wrap the whole bulb of garlic in foil, and stick it in the back corner of your grill.

Flip the onion packet over after about 3 minutes, cook another 3 minutes and remove to cool. The garlic should cook about 15 minutes, then remove it as well.

Put the Eggplant planks on the grill and cook 2 minutes on each side and remove. You should have nice grill marks on each side.

Dice the Eggplant and the onion into 1/4” cubes. put them in a large bowl.

Open the garlic packet and separate the cloves, you should be able to squeeze the roasted garlic cloves out like a thick paste. Add this to the bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly. Refrigerate for 3- 4 hours, serve on fresh or toasted crusty bread.

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A great addition to an antipasto or appetizer platter.

1 medium Eggplant 1/8 cup table salt 1/2 cup red wine vinegar 1 cup water 1 Tbsp. salt 1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper 1/4 tsp. coarse ground black pepper 1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning Peel, then slice the eggplant into 1/4” x 1/4” strips. Salt generously and place in colander to drain for 1 hour.

Pack the strips into jars, leaving about 1” of space at the top. Mix up the dry ingredients, portion the mixture evenly into the jars.

Mix the water and vinegar, pour the liquid into the jars to top them off. Cap tightly, shake well to mix and refrigerate. Turn the jars over periodically, to keep the pickling solution mixed. Ready to serve in 4 to 5 days.

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Grilled Eggplant Medallions Caprese This could be a main course with a simple pasta dish, or a hearty appetizer.

2 medium Eggplants 1/4 cup table salt 1/4 cup olive oil 1 ball of fresh Mozzarella 2 ripe slicing tomatoes Handful of Basil leaves Quick Vinaigrette Slice the eggplant into 1/2” thick medallions. Salt generously, place in a colander to drain.

Fire up the grill to medium high.

Pat the eggplant medallions dry, then brush with olive oil to coat each side.

Grill about 3 minutes each side, then place in a large platter.

Alternate with ripe tomato slices, fresh mozzarella and garnish with Basil leaves, whole or shredded.

Drizzle with vinaigrette and serve warm.

ONLINE www.issuu.com/ozarkhillsandhollows

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Sassafras Springs Vineyard NORTHWEST ARKANSAS' NEW PREMIER WEDDING VENUE W I N E R Y C H A P E L RU I N S A N D E V E N T C E N T E R F O R R E C E P T I O N

6461 East Guy Terry Road Springdale, Arkansas 72764 479-419-4999 • S a s s a f r a s S p r i n g s V i n e y a r d @ g m a i l . c o m

www.SassafrasSpringsVineyard.com June • July 2017 | 55

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Come Home OZARK

in the Ozarks STORY AND PHOTOS BY STEVE PARKER

T

he Ozarks are full of enthusiastic individuals who are constantly on the search for something special. Ozarkians scout for unusual birds, dig for diamonds, search for archaeological bones, hunt for elusive animals, scour for mushrooms, and more.

I decided to join my fellow Ozarkians, but to limit my search to something easier to find… good wine in the Ozarks. A recent quest sent me to four great wineries, two in Missouri and two in Arkansas. The search required some serious sacrifice, but I figured, “What the heck?

Someone had to make the effort to spread the news!”

June • July 2017 | 57

Curling Vine Winery My quest began in Branson, Missouri, with a visit to Curling Vine Winery.

This lavish tasting room is located in Branson just off the main entertainment strip. The lighted electronic sign was easy to spot and the beautiful exterior of the building promised an upscale adventure.

After meeting briefly with the busy manager, Tena Vos, I was introduced to the extensive showroom stocked with a large variety of wines, wine themed articles, clothing and food. One unique feature to Curling Vine is that all of the wines are made from grapes sourced in the state of Missouri. Those of you who have been to Branson in the past might remember the location formerly known as Stone Hill Winery. Stone Hill and now Curling Vine are descendants of Hermann Winery, one of the oldest wineries in Missouri.

When the current owners of the business decided to retire, son Thomas took over management of Stone Hill in Hermann, Missouri and rebranded the Branson location as Curling Vine Winery. But enough of history…let’s get to the tasting.

The beautiful tasting room offers a selection of whites and reds followed by a “don’t miss” tour of the facility. My tasting began with a white Vignoles, flowery and fruity tasting of tropical fruits. At the other end of the white spectrum was Chardonel with stone fruit, apple and pear. Both are very drinkable for the more advanced or beginning taster.

The reds consisted of a selection from a bold Norton, the official grape of Missouri, to a medium Chambourcin and finishing with a sweet Catawba. All had unique flavors true to their grape origin.

Dessert wines are also available focusing on a port style, sherry and late harvest. Finishing the list is a dry and sweet sparkling.

The skill of the winemaker clearly shows through in this Missouri grape focused wine profile. Although it is not necessary, I would advise taking the time to tour the facility with a knowledgeable guide and view the collection of “moonshine stills.”

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Mt. Pleasant Winery

Continuing out of the Curling Vine parking lot to the next stop light, make a short left and you will arrive at Mt. Pleasant Winery showroom, a gorgeous adobe facility with a three-story entrance.

The newness of the facility belies the fact that Mount Pleasant Winery has over 150 years of winemaking experience.

The wines source from the Augusta AVA, (American Viticulture Area), which in 1980 was the first federally approved AVA, eight months before the Napa Valley AVA in California. This AVA wine region encompasses 15 square miles around the city of Augusta, Missouri, making this another of “Missouri grape only” wineries. Upon entering the beautiful sunlight filled showroom, I met my gracious hostess, Kay Dryden, who mans (or womans) the tasting room.

To begin, the sparkling tasting glassware makes sampling both white and red varietals an engaging event. Starting with a Vignoles, chilled to the right tasting temperature, I found it clean with some stone fruit softness, a great wine to start the sipping experience at any party. Kay called it a great “front porch in the summer” wine. Stepping to the next level, the American Villagio is dryer with the taste of apples and adds a crisp finish. However, for me, the stars of the show were the reds with the Cabernet Sauvignon, the Merlot and the inky black Norton. All had very substantial fruit flavors accompanied with a softness in the Merlot and Cabernet and ultra full bodied mouth filling Norton.

Wine enthusiasts should not miss this tasting. As in the TV commercials….BUT WAIT! There’s More! Just off the delightful showroom with its wine gifts and posters, I found a long hallway with two large tasting areas. Mt. Pleasant offers Wine 101 classes – “A Wine Education Experience.” For those who wish to learn more about wine tasting and how to pair wine with foods, (cheese and chocolates, go figure!), Wine 101 offers a one-hour class with a much higher level of knowledge and appreciation of wine.

A second large tasting area is for bus tour groups who are welcome to join the experience. The rooms are also available for groups, events and parties with special catering choices available. As I tasted the delicious wines, I wandered into the large tasting classrooms and found the walls lined with local and regional artwork provided by the Branson Arts Council. The final exciting experience at Mt. Pleasant was the chance to bottle my own dessert wine. Coming from a large specially designed 600 gallon French oak barrel, the bottles make a great souvenir or gift. Overall, the beautiful showroom, knowledgeable staff and relaxing artwork makes this an experience well worth your tasting time in Branson.

Tontitown Winery

Sassafrass Springs Winery

The next winery on this tough assignment was Tontitown Winery in Tontitown, Ark., just west of Interstate 49. Soon after arriving at this quaint winery, FAMILY was the word which came to mind. This Ranalli family has generations of children and grandchildren who have worked all of the facets of the wine business, from planting, pruning, picking, crushing, bottling, and running the six-days-a-week tasting room building a solid knowledge of wines.

This history begins with the quaint tasting room, located in the “Taldo House” a Tontitown landmark built in 1917 where the Ranalli family began making wine in 1923. A history room proudly displays photos of the families and a range of winery equipment. The on-site wines are from local Tontitown grown grapes. I found the tasting to be a friendly pleasurable event.

Beginning with the whites, I would recommend the Chardonnay which is very soft on the palette with subtle fruit ending with a crisp finish. Many visitors are great fans of Muscadine, a Southern favorite if you like a sweeter wine. The Niagara is a delicious white, another “summer on the porch winner.” Moving to the reds I found the red made from Chambourcin very drinkable with the taste and aromas of cherries. The Italian Red brought to mind a bit of a Sangiovese and made me long for a plate of pasta. Finally, I would highly recommend the Amica Della Nonna (Grandmas Friend) made from Concord grapes and further fortified with brandy.

The friendly and knowledgeable winery hosts make tasting a pleasant adventure. Tontitown Winery is host to musical events on their great patio both Friday and Saturday nights. A visit to their web page will give you the dates and times for the summer events. Bring your own lawn chairs and enjoy a relaxing evening.

The final stop on my adventure was a visit to Sassafrass Springs Winery.

This new and unique winery is located on East Guy Terry Road in Springdale, Ark. In 2014, Gene Long and wife Cheryl, locally well-known insurance executives, saw the vision of Sassafrass Springs Vinyards and have changed a milking barn and stable into a spectacular tasting room with a relaxing atmosphere. The tasting room extends to a covered glass seating area complete with fireplace. When nice weather is available, I prefer stepping from the tasting room to one of the three large tree-covered wooden decks ideal for group events, birthday parties and more. Musical entertainment happens Wednesday, Friday and Saturday nights with dinner available. A Sunday brunch compliments the food venue. Cheese and meat selections are available to compliment the wines.

Nearby the chapel ruins offer an open air wedding option.

This beautiful venue is booked every weekend through next year.

Following the wedding, a renovated hall holding 200-plus is available for receptions and large group events. Both Gene and Cheryl are bubbling with new ideas and possible plans for the future include a larger wine production area and perhaps some tiny houses where guests could spend a few days in this beautiful setting. Yes, but WHAT ABOUT THE WINE? I saved the best for last! Winemaker Stephen Dollar has produced five wines at the facility and all have received medals in a prestigious judging.

I sampled the Sassy Riesling and found it crisp and sharp with great fruit. The Blend is a red with a great nose and a great mouth feel. My favorite was Geno’s Select Red which gave me a “mind trip” to Italy. Although it is primarily Cynthiana it has a definite Sangiovese crispness. During my visit, the winemaker was previewing an upcoming Chardonnay. Stephen has been working with the University of Arkansas developing a new strain of vines. When ready, Sassafras Springs will be the first to use this strain for wine. This winery is an absolute “must do” for wine lovers.

As I traveled back from my quest, I remembered each winery for its uniqueness, atmosphere but mostly tasting the great wine produced in the hills and hollows of Missouri and Arkansas. Now that I have given you the map, search out these gems for yourself. You will be glad you did!

June • July 2017 | 59

DESTINATION

Ozarks

THE GREAT ESCAPE STONEWATER COVE Shell Knob, Missouri

STORY AND PHOTOS BY KAYLA BRANSTETTER

ST ET TE R W IT H KAYL A BR AN

W

Stonewater Cove is owned and operated by the Bond Family: Randi Bond, Jim Bond, Kristi Pihl, Brett Pihl, Kita Bond, Ruth Bond, James Bond

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hat is the thrill of a vacation or a romantic get-away? I have experienced a long line of trips that opened my eyes to not only culture, food, people, and sights, but exhaustion, indecisiveness, and frustrations. When my husband and I return home from a trip, I feel I need a vacation from my vacation.

Finally, I know the perfect place for vacation and relaxation for couples and families alike, and this place is local.

Imagine erasing long security lines, flight delays, traffic jams, long lines, waiting lists, and decisions; instead, imagine being surrounded by the tranquility of nature, lake, comfort, and better yet, no hassle or hidden costs. After a visit to this magical place, I thought back over my past trips, they suddenly seem preposterously stressed, as if for all these years, my family and I vacationed wrong.

So, what changed my mind about my previous trips? The resort, Stonewater

Cove, located outside of Shell Knob, Missouri. After one visit, I realized what I missed from my past trips, true relaxation and solitude.

As I drove to Stonewater Cove, I endured slow drivers and construction work that resulted in one-lane traffic – in other words, I surrendered to the feelings of frustration, annoyance, and aggravation. However, the moment I turned onto Stallion Bluff Road, a new feeling crept into my emotions – peace as I discovered an old friend – nature.

With the turn of each corner, the stress of society disappeared into a memory as the trees wrapped their limbs around me and the mountains smiled as if to welcome me back from civilization.

When I arrived and exited my vehicle, I listened to the trickling of water and noticed nature encircling my husband and me. I turned to my husband and acknowledged my surroundings, “This

place is gorgeous. I already feel relaxed.”

We opened the wooden-carved doors to the lodge, where Adam greeted us with a warm and welcoming smile. As he gave us a tour of the grounds and introduced us to the staff, I began to feel like family for the staff mirrored Adam’s hospitality.

After our tour, my husband and I strolled through the resort’s grounds, admiring the beauty, the seclusion, and tranquility before returning to the lodge for dinner. All meals are served in the main lodge, with the main show centered on witnessing the sunset over Table Rock Lake.

Chef Singyn Hunter enhances one’s experience at Stonewater Cove, for everything he creates is made from scratch and beautifully placed on display for guests. His international experience brings culture, flavor and a uniqueness to every plate. His culinary skills matched those of the most skilled chefs around the world, without the top chef price, for three meals per day are included with the resort’s nightly rate, and I promise, no guest ever goes hungry with Singyn Hunter’s cooking.

At the conclusion of dinner, and in the sweet silence of the sunset, my husband and I sat on a rocking chair, watching the sun’s final good-bye as it slowly faded into the lake, with the light blue sky vanishing into the pink reflecting off the tranquility of the water, to form a perfect silhouette of the Ozark Mountains. Soon the sun disappeared and the stars awaken. For the first time in a long time, we found pleasure in simply observing one of nature’s most perfect gift, the sunset. During this moment, I agreed with writer and poet,

Ralph Waldo Emerson, “In the woods, we return to reason and faith.”

The journey to this place began in 2000, when the Bond family purchased the land, with the hopes of one day opening a resort. After the purchase, they spent from 2000 until 2004 building roads and preparing the area for construction – with official construction beginning in 2004. This endeavor was a family decision for the Bond family, who always enjoyed visiting Table Rock Lake and desired to design the perfect vacation. They pulled from their own various experiences to create a rugged, luxurious getaway for couples, families, friends, weddings, or anyone interested in a flexible schedule complete with activities for everyone – spa services, ATVs, zip-lining, hiking, sunset cruises, pool, miniature golf, canoeing and kayaking, mountain biking, fishing trips, seasonal horseback riding and more. With the

beauty of nature coupled with the activities and friendly staff, the area forces one to disconnect from phones and create memories.

Words and pictures will never truly capture the heart and ambiance of the resort for the Bond family placed much care, love and personality into their resort, and they continue to place much care, love and personality into their resort. Overall, this resort is not a corporation looking for numbers, but a family and staff who truly go above and beyond to make one’s experience as relaxing and hassle-free as possible. In other words, they strive to spoil their guests.

I love to travel to create new memories, meet new people, and experience a new culture, but I have never experienced anything like Stonewater Cove, and as a local, I am proud to discover such a special place exist within our hills and hollows of the region.

June • July 2017 | 61

OUR READERS ARE YOUR CUSTOMERS

Celebrating Heritage, Farm and Healthy Living in the Heart of America

Covering and Distributing all across Southwest Missouri, Northwest Arkansas, and the entire Ozarks Region.

Always available online at www.issuu.com/ozarkhillsandhollows

Available on news-stands throughout the region and bordering states with A subscriber base that is growing with every issue published.

We also provide free issues to all advertisers and in the local distribution area at the following locations: Chamber of Commerce Offices, Banks, Community Centers, Libraries, Restaurants, Hospitals and Medical Centers, Welcome Centers, Tourist Attractions, and others.

Our goal is to provide the finest quality content, building a loyal readership that anticipates reading every issue cover to cover.

417-652-3083 | P.O. Box 214 Exeter, MO 65647 | ozarkhillsandhollows@gmail.com

www.ozarkhillsandhollows.com

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POPSICLES

continued from page 21 Extra Fruity, No Drip Popsicles

Homemade Vanilla Pudding Pops 1/4 cup cornstarch 1/4 tsp. salt 3 cups whole milk 3 large egg yolks 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract Place a fine mesh sieve over a medium bowl; set aside. In a medium saucepan, whisk together sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Gradually whisk in milk, mixing until ingredients are dissolved. Whisk in egg yolks. Whisking constantly, cook over medium heat until just starting to boil. Reduce heat to low; continue to whisk, and cook 1 minute. Remove from heat, and immediately pour through sieve into bowl (to remove any solids); stir in vanilla. Cool for 5 minutes. Spoon into popsicle molds.

Once cooled (about 30 minutes), place in freezer and freeze until solid, at least 4 hours.

Xtra Creamy Pudding Pops 1 large box (5.1 oz.) chocolate pudding 3 cups cold milk 2 cups frozen whipped topping (Cool Whip)

1 3 oz. package Jell-o 1 pkg. unsweetened Kool-aid 1/2 cup sugar 2 cups boiling water 2 cups cold water Mix the dry Jell-o, Kool-Aid, and sugar. Stir the boiling water into the dry ingredients for two minutes. Stir in the cold water. Fill your popsicle molds and carefully place in freezer. Try different combinations of Jell-o and Kool-aid flavors for variety.

3-Berry Popsicles 2/3 cup sugar 1 cup blueberries 1 cup strawberries, hulled and sliced 1 cup raspberries 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice Place sugar and 1/3 cup water in a small saucepan and bring to boil over high heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Set aside.

Beat pudding mix and cold milk for two minutes. Fold in whipped topping. Spoon into popsicle molds (tap molds on counter to help prevent air bubbles) and place in freezer for at least 4 hours or till froze solid.

Combine blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, and lemon juice in a blender and purée until smooth, about 30 seconds. Add 1/3 cup simple syrup and blend just until combined. Taste and add more sugar syrup to taste preference. Pour into popsicle molds, add sticks and freeze at least 8 hours.

Rootbeer Float Pops

Fruit and yogurt pops

1 20 oz bottle of Rootbeer 1/2 cup of half & half 1/2 tsp. of vanilla extract ¼ cup maple syrup

2 cups fresh blueberries, raspberries, strawberries and sliced bananas, mixed 2 cups plain or vanilla yogurt 1/4 cup white sugar

Open up the rootbeer and let it sit open in the fridge to release extra fizz. Combine your cream, half & half, vanilla and maple syrup and stir together.

Place the mixed blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, sliced bananas, yogurt, and sugar into a blender. Cover, and blend until fruit is chunky or smooth, as desired.

Fill popsicle mold about 1/4 way with rootbeer and freeze.

Pour half of the cream mixture into all molds, add sticks and freeze. Repeat two more time so that there are two rootbeer and two cream layers. Freeze all till solid, at least 4 hours or overnight.

Fill paper cups 3/4 full with fruit mixture. Cover the top of each cup with a strip of aluminum foil. Poke a popsicle stick through the center of the foil on each cup. Place the cups in the freezer for at least 5 hours. To serve, remove foil and peel off the paper cup.

June • July 2017 | 63

Focused on What’s On the Way D O N N E L M S E X P LO R AT I O N W I T H P H OTO G R A P H Y STORY BY SHERRY LEVERICH, PHOTOS BY DON NELMS

“Photography is more than a medium for factual communication of ideas. It is a creative art.”

– Ansel Adams

Don Nelms says that he has been a photographer for 15 years – but really it’s just a transposition of what he has been doing his lifetime.

Don and his wife, Millie (of 50 years), live out in Jasper – Newton County, Arkansas.

Jasper provides a picturesque landscape east of Fayetteville and positioned along the Buffalo River. Don keeps a tripod permanently positioned on his porch, and a camera by the door, at all times ready for a shot. Sunrises provide many occasions for camera clicks – especially when it happens that the morning mist 64 |

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is mingled with sunrays, accompanied by cloud clutter and blushed with the glow of reflective fragments that incorporate radiant, and fleeting, colors.

Though he loves photography, Don’s life is varied and filled with many levels of professional activity. His busy and productive life all clicks with his natural disposition to order and creativity, “I like building things...when I was little I

always wanted to build a race car – and when I was 14 I built a race car. I build businesses...and I love building buildings.”

Though he always took photos through his life and career, he didn’t really latch onto photography as a pastime until the development of digital cameras.

Don presents photography and picture development as a simple thing for him, but the elements are truly complicated, yet easy for him to grasp. He finely tunes his camera, and after that he perfects the raw photo images through photoshop – taking it a step further to make sure that the actual photo transmits what he saw through his own eyes when he

shot the photo. “I want to make the photos more like it really was,” Don shared.

“What I see and what I’m looking for – is an organization of the imagery that appeals to me.” The artist in Don looks for a composition that fills his frame with just the right combination of shape, pattern and color.

The ease in which Don has taken on photography might have something to do with his lifetime of building and attention to detail. Maybe being mature when becoming a photographer has helped Don be more aware of what he desires. He doesn’t waste his time taking photos of things so extraordinary that a photograph June • July 2017 | 65

Takes My Breath Away

By Don Nelms Here I go now down the road I have never been Not caring what's at the other end Focused on what's on the way Today I don't care where I have been The light is soft and the winds are calm And I don't have to be anywhere Don't have to do anything I don't want to And the day just melts away And that takes my breath away All the big things (are now) today are put away What I see is the beauty (on) along the way By the road the flowers make such a show (The fields of flowers make quite a show) Where they come from heaven only knows It's amazing how time is speeding by How things are so pleasing to my eye It's so easy to frame an image in my mind They feel suspended in time The light is soft and the winds are calm And I don't have to be anywhere Don't have to do anything I don't want to And the day just melts away And that takes my breath away On this journey a camera is by my side To capture the photos I feel inside To take back and share with my friends And remind the world where we have been The light is soft and the winds are calm

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won’t do it justice, but instead captures photographs that can be sufficiently transformed to two dimensions. “I take photos of things that make me go, ‘wow,’” shared Don. Don’s photographs are primarily of Ozark scenery, wildlife, wildflowers and whatever else catches his eye. He takes thousands of photos. His Jasper hilltop home lends itself perfectly to his inclination towards landscapes.

Though wildlife isn’t something that he seeks out to take photos of, he does not turn down an opportunity, “Once we were driving home from Seattle and we spotted a badger on the side of the road.

We stopped and I spent an hour taking photos of this badger...I was able to get close, and it kept looking at me.”

Travel does offer him the occasion to take photos in very different terrains. Before the advent of digital

photography, Don and Millie went on a trip to Africa where he was able to take many incredible photos of natural wild animals and landscape. Even throughout his travels in the U.S., Don has enjoyed seeking out photographic venues. He is currently contemplating a trip to Colorado for photographs, “One thing I have in my mind is to photograph along the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains.”

He explained that the creeks and prairies are magnificent...and with the beautiful mountains behind. Don has already visited Maroon Bells, a group of mountains south of Aspen.

“It’s National Forest, and extremely beautiful – in fact it’s one of the most photographed scenes in Colorado. I have been there twice, once during the first snowfall.”

When Don isn’t photographing Ozark landscapes, he is busy at Adventure Subaru, playing guitar at Sunrise Guitars, or entertaining at Sunrise Stage. As well as spending

time with his wife, Millie, their two sons and their families.

Don’s photos can be publicly seen on display at Mercy Hospital at Pinnacle Hills in Rogers, and at the Adventure Subaru Dealership

in Fayetteville, as well as Sunrise Guitars located in North Fayetteville.

For more photos and print and canvas purchases, please visit www. nelmsgallery.com, call 870-446-5477 or email nelmsgallery@yahoo.com.

June • July 2017 | 67

Jesse Frank and

t h e i r n at i v e fa m i l i e s STORY BY LAUREEN SAULS-LESSARD

J

ust when you think that every stone has been turned in the lives of the notorious outlaws Jesse and Frank James, public access to electronic databases and genealogy websites have opened doors to discover old government land patents, heirship reports and genealogy data that include personal interviews & genealogy records in places like the Santee Sioux Nation archives. Other places like Find-a-Grave website include family data and photographs to validate the legendary outlaw Jesse James and his brother Frank’s ties to the native community, revealing at least one wife and child in the Santee Sioux community of Yankton, Nebraska, located just 21 miles from one of their famous hideout called Devil’s Nest.

Adolph Gerdau, W.H. Harm, Frank James & Jesse James. Frank and Jesse are pictured with Nebraska locals, just 24 miles from Yankton, in Hartington, Nebraska. Photo courtesy of SD Magazine 68 |

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In an heirship report reproduced from the National Archives for the Bureau of Indian Affairs and dated August of 1915, Santee Sioux Principal Chief Napoleon “Hdakinyan” Wabasha IV, gave an interview that validated the identity and tribal affiliation of Joseph Jesse (James) Chase who claimed to be the son of white man and outlaw Jesse James, and also that of Winona Emma, daughter of Jesse’s brother (Frank James). This interview with the Examiner of Inheritance for the South Dakota Santee Agency is included in the Santee Sioux heirship report of Joseph’s grandmother Mary “Hdonicewin” Wabasha, wife of Thomas “Wapate” Wabasha, and mother of Joseph’s mother Hanyetuanawin, aka Maggie Wabasha Chase Goodteacher, pages 15-19. Chief Wabasha’s interview validated Joseph’s property inheritance claim and the lifelong claim of his heritage, that Margaret “Maggie” “Hanyetuanawin” Wabasha had an Indian marriage with the white man (Jesse Chase), back in 1869 until 1870.

Also, Maggie’s sister “Bedozawaitewin” (Anna) Wabasha’s Indian marriage with Jesse’s brother in 1867 until 1868 before the land allotments. Chief Wabasha said that both women had children with these white men. Anna had a daughter called Winona, or Emma, and Maggie had a son called Joseph Jesse (James) Chase. After the outlaws left, Anna took an Indian husband, James Thompson, and died later. Daughter Emma remained

with her grandmother Mary Wabasha and later married Abraham Red Wing.

Maggie married William “Hawakawhdi” Goodteacher, a farmer who raised Joseph as his stepson.

There is a Joseph James household listed in the 1869 Santee Census that could be Jesse & Maggie as this was the period they were briefly together. He doesn’t appear again in other available Santee census records after that. There are two undated Santee Census reports (est. early 1880s) showing Maggie living with William Goodteacher and her son Joseph Chase. The previous household in the same Santee census reports shows a James Thompson living with his motherin-law Hdonicewin (Mary Wabasha) and a 9-year-old stepdaughter Emma. Jesse and Frank were known to use aliases including the name Chase as a lark, because they were always on the chase from the law. The Chase brothers left their Indian wives, never to return again. There is myth that says they gave their Indian wives a large amount of money before they left, but that is not documented in the Santee records.

Joseph Jesse James Chase & Martha Wakute Family. Joseph and Martha had eight children.

Photo contributed by Sue Bowen, G-G-Grandaughter of Joseph Jesse Chase

Chief Napoleon Hdakinyan Wabasha IV – 1902 Photo courtesy of First People US

A period photo documenting Jesse & Frank’s visitation to Hartington, Nebraska, a town located just 24 1/2 miles from Yankton was discovered by a local rancher and historian there, Carvel Cooley.

The period photo was taken by an E.S. Kibbe photographer, and features locals: Adolph Gerdan, W. H. Harm, Frank and

Jesse James. E.S. Kibbe was a franchise company out of Hartford, Connecticut, that supplied wholesale groceries and supplies to mining towns, railroad communities, etc. including the military across the country. They had stores from the east coast to Saint Louis, and outposts along the western frontier. Hartington did not have a General Store until 1884 when the railroad was extended from Wakefield.

The Kibbe outposts offered supplies for the region during its development.

A brief background on the two outlaws show that Jesse Woodson James and Alexander Franklin “Frank” James were born in Kearney, Missouri. They were the sons of a Baptist Preacher, Robert

Sallee James (1818-1850) and Zerelda Elizabeth Cole James Sims (1825-1911).

Their father left the family to preach to gold miners in California during the Gold Rush, but contracted cholera and died.

Frank was smart and self-taught and took advantage of his father’s book collection.

Jesse wasn’t interested in education but could read and write. He had leadership skills and was good with horses. Jesse’s ambition was to become a preacher like his father. Frank had ambitions of pursuing a higher education, but the Civil War got in the way. He joined the Missouri State Guard fighting for the Confederacy and was injured. After his recovery at the age of 19, Frank and Jesse joined William June • July 2017 | 69

Quantrill’s Raiders, a group of southern sympathizers from Missouri who attacked abolitionist “Jayhawkers” in Kansas.

When the war ended, the U.S. government pardoned Confederate troops, but not guerrilla bands like Quantrill’s Raiders who were considered outlaws. The group tried to surrender but failed as federal soldiers were informed to shoot them on site. They retaliated by creating the James-Younger gang and began their life of crime.

Jesse and Frank committed many robberies over a span of fifteen years involving banks, trains and stagecoaches across Missouri, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska that resulted in deaths of innocents as well as government agents from the Pinkerton Detective Agency.

During this time Jesse and his gang members hid in mountains, caves and cabin hideouts in the Indian Territory with names like Devils Nest and Buzzard’s Roost where they buried their loot and gold. Jesse and Frank took Indian wives who bore them children, even though they were both legally married to white women back in Oklahoma and Missouri.

Margaret “Maggie” Wabasha Chase Goodteacher, Indian wife of Jesse James.

Photo courtesy of Dolores Finkelstein

Joseph Jesse James Chase Photo courtesy of Susan Bowen, Granddaughter

Jesse married his first cousin Zerelda Sims on April 24, 1874 in Missouri. She was named after Jesse’s mother. Jesse called her “Zee”. Jesse and Zee had four children: Jesse Edwards James, Gould James, Montgomery James and Mary Susan James Barr. Frank married Ann 70 |

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Ralston, the daughter of a business associate Sam Ralston. They lived on a farm in Oklahoma and had one son, Robert Franklin James.

Jesse and Frank’s life of crime came to end when a fellow gang member and cousin Robert Ford shot Jesse in the back for the reward money. Jesse’s mother Zerelda Sims had him buried in the front yard of the James Farm with an inscribed monument of his assassin. Jesse’s body was later moved to the family plot in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Kearney, Missouri, after the death of his wife and mother in 1911.

Frank surrendered to Missouri Governor, Thomas Crittenden, after

his brother’s death and was jailed in Independence. A jury acquitted him after five minutes of deliberation, during a circus like trial held at the nearby Gallatin Opera House. The tales and escapades of the James’ were legendary and no one wanted to convict him, even though he was a criminal. The loss of Jesse was tragic because he was well liked. They were not about to condemn his brother. They wanted a piece of him, a souvenir. After his acquittal, Frank refused to capitalize on his outlaw fame and took menial jobs. He returned home to his farm and wife, Ann Ralston James, where he died at the age of 72. Frank was cremated for fear of grave

robbers. His ashes were kept in a bank vault until Ann’s death. She was cremated also and the couple was interred together in Hill Park Cemetery.

According to a publication of the Oklahoma Historical Society, Jesse and Frank were familiar with the western Indian Territory. After the war, the James’ and members of their gang had hideouts in Indian Territory at Robbers Cave in Blue Canyon, Nowata County; at Buzzard’s Roost near Cement and on Bear Creek in Garfield County to name a few. Several generations of treasure hunters have diligently sought caches of gold worth millions supposedly hidden in the Wichita Mountains. This story was popularized in J. Frank Dobie’s 1930 book, Coronado’s Children: Tales of Lost Mines and Buried Treasures of the Southwest, which devoted a full chapter to treasure(s) of the Wichitas and Frank James’s futile effort to find the location.

Jesse and his Sioux wife Maggie Wabasha had eight grandchildren from their son Joseph Jesse Chase and his wife Martha Wakute. Maggie died on June 2, 1909. Baptism and Census records of the Santee Indian Church Mission validate that Maggie and William Goodteacher raised Joseph who became a farmer like Goodteacher. Joseph’s memoriam says

he was born to Jesse Woodson James & Maggie Wabasha in March 1870. He died on August 2, 1940 in Santee, Nebraska and his wife Martha in 1915. William Goodteacher died on June 18, 1933.

William Goodteacher, who raised Joseph as a step-son along with mother Maggie Wabasha.

Photo courtesy of Judy Shapiro

The number of land patents and census records in the Indian Territory for the names Jesse and Frank James along with their aliases are many and hard to validate. The Wabasha, Goodteacher, Thompson and Chase family claims can be found in the Bureau of Land Management records as well as Santee Church Mission heirship reports. They could be the clues needed to locate family ancestors, but also the buried loot and treasures of Jesse and Frank if their secrets were entrusted to Indian families.

What safer place to hide gold than on Indian land? The James’ were shunned by the tribal Chieftains for their criminal activities, yet were not judged and well liked by the people, especially the women.

They lived in peace together. The James’ myths live on but with new validations for some like this.

There are tourism attractions for historians and fans of the James brothers in Missouri. The James Farm and Museum in Kearney, once owned by Frank James is restored and offers guided tours.

For more information contact: 816-6286065. Jesse James last home where he was shot and killed is located about 35 miles from Kearney in St. Joseph. For more information on tours, contact: 816232-8206.

More information about other places like Robbers Cave State Park in Wilburton that trace the footsteps of Jesse and Frank can found at: www.travelok.com/ article_page/oklahomaslegendary-outlaws and www.legendsofamerica. com/mo-jamesattractions. html.

Thanks to Santee Sioux Genealogy and The Santee Sioux Tribe of Nebraska for sharing their historical data which can be found here on Facebook: www.facebook. com/Santee.Sioux.

Genealogy

Santee Sioux Reservation Map 1866 Photo courtesy of Bureau of Indian Affairs, National Archives June • July 2017 | 71

A Call to Arms in the Ozarks STORY BY STAN FINE

WHEREAS, there are escaped prisoners threatening and engaging in public disorder which represents a present threat to the lives, safety and protection of the citizens of McDonald County, Missouri, and; WHEREAS, such circumstances create a condition of distress and hazard to the public health and safety to the citizens of McDonald County recognized to be beyond the capabilities of local and State authorities; NOW, THEREFORE, I, CHRISTOPHER S. BOND, GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF MISSOURI, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the constitution and Statutes of this State and pursuant to Section 41.480 RSMo, 1978, do hereby declare that an emergency exists in McDonald County, Missouri, and I order and direct the Adjutant General of the State, or his designee, to forthwith call and order into active service such portions of the organized militia as he deems necessary to aid the local law enforcement officials to perform law enforcement functions, and it is further ordered and directed that the Adjutant General or his designee, and through him the Commanding Officer of any unit or other organization of such organized militia so called into active service to take such action and employ such equipment and weapons as may be deemed necessary in support of civilian authorities, and to provide such other assistance as may be authorized and directed by the Governor of this State.

I

n September of 1981 Governor Christopher, Kit, Bond was the highest ranking governmental figure in the state of Missouri – however, he obviously had little familiarity with his constituents residing in the rural southwest area of the state known as McDonald County.

Almost every resident there owned at least one firearm and needed no special invitation what-so-ever to display their rifle, shotgun or pistol. The rearview mirrors found inside pick-up trucks were rendered relatively useless as the owners of the trucks covered the rear windows with gun racks which were home to several rifles and shotguns.

The issuance of Governor Bond’s executive order was prompted by the theft of a Lansing, Kansas State penitentiary guard’s uniform and found its conclusion alongside a set of railroad tracks in the small town of Goodman, Missouri. Seven dangerous inmates escaped from the Kansas correctional facility on Sunday, September 7, 1981 and for seven anxious days and six sleepless nights the group,

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five of which were convicted murderers, avoided capture.

Shortly following the escape, three of the fugitives broke into a farmhouse located a mere fifteen miles from the prison. The Bonner Springs, Kansas, farm was owned by an elderly couple, Robert and Roseline Seymour. Robert said that the trio could take whatsoever they wanted but he beseeched the intruders to show mercy and asked that no harm come to Roseline. Lengths of rope were used to restrain the Seymours and as one of the intruders fastened the knots around Roseline’s hands he said, “Don’t be scared lady, I’ve got a mother too.”

That group of wanted men, John Kitchell, Robert Bentley and Everett Cameron stole the couple’s car and drove to Springfield, Missouri, where they absconded with yet another vehicle. That car belonged to a college student who was also bound with lengths of rope.

Three of the fugitives, Terry McClain, Marvin Thornton and Larry Miller, were spotted by a Bonner Springs police officer

only hours after the escape. After a car chase and the exchange of gunfire the three were apprehended but not before four bullets fired from the guns of the outlaws penetrated the body of the officer.

The seventh escapee, James Murray was spotted near Aurora, Missouri, the following Tuesday and following a brief, and relatively uneventful, foot chase he was taken into custody. That left only Kitchell, Bentley and Cameron still out there and on the lamb.

Kitchell and Bentley were convicted murderers while Cameron had been found guilty of rape. These were desperate, dangerous men and nobody knew where they were headed, but that uncertainty quickly came to an end.

A car occupied by three unrecognized and rough looking men was stopped by a Noel, Missouri, police officer. Before the lawman could determine the identity of the men the trio leapt from the vehicle and fled into the woods and out of sight. Accounts of the men’s sightings soon began to be reported by residents of McDonald County. The news media provided the men’s descriptions and three strangers fitting those descriptions were seen walking in the wooded, rolling hills and low-lying pastures of the sparsely populated area of the Ozarks.

Men gathered up their weapons and groups of shotgun wielding volunteers dressed in blue-jeans or bib-overalls, stopped cars on dusty and desolate dirt roads. As cars and pick-up trucks were flagged down, apologies were offered to friends and neighbors for the inconveniences, but it didn’t seem as though the vehicle’s occupants minded the delays one bit; many found the whole experience somewhat exhilarating.

On the afternoon of Saturday, September 12, a keen-eyed man who resided just west of Ginger Blue, an area located between the towns of Noel and Lanagan, reported the sighting of three suspicious men near a secluded house. The sighting prompted two law enforcement officers, State Troopers Walters and Ferguson, to drive to the house where they, with the benefit of the patrol car’s loud-speaker, ordered anyone inside to come out with hands raised above their heads.

Cameron and Kitchell later stated that they were not inside the home at the time but saw and overheard the proceedings.

Bentley came outside with his hands raised skyward and from the porch asked, “What do you want.” The officers were certain that Bentley was indeed one of the fugitives and soon had him in handcuffs.

Bentley was allowed to use the loud speaker and asked the two remaining fugitives to give themselves up. He attempted to entice the two when he said, “They have treated me kindly and have not threatened to shoot me.”

The officers later learned that Cameron and Kitchell had indeed been there but Bentley’s words had not convinced them to surrender. Bentley had apparently discovered a bottle of wine while hiding in the house and was found to be inebriated when arrested.

In an attempt to leave McDonald County, Cameron and Kitchell climbed into the boxcar of a northbound Kansas City Southern train. Kent Grigsby, a Lanagan resident, saw the two and called the sheriff ’s office. He reported seeing the two fugitives inside the boxcar and gave the train’s direction of travel.

McDonald County Sheriff, Lou Keeling, arranged to have the getaway freight train stopped near the small town of Goodman, Missouri. There Cameron and Kitchell, the last remnants of the elusive band of scoundrels, were taken into custody. Following a brief foot pursuit the short-lived freedom enjoyed by the last of the escapees came to an end.

Cameron and Bentley later told authorities that the week in the Southwest Missouri woods had been a terrible experience. The men had eaten very little and fresh drinking water was hard to find. Bentley, Cameron and Kitchell were covered head-to-toe with ticks and chiggers.

In many ways the three men of bad temperament were glad the ordeal was over.

While on the run the escaped convicts had stolen six cars, threatened six families, broken into two homes and taken three hostages. It was estimated that the cost of the resources expended in their capture exceeded $65,000.00.

Sheriff Lou Keeling had only two full-time deputies at his disposal, however law enforcement officers from Missouri, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Kansas, the U.S. Border Patrol and the F.B.I. as well as many Missouri National Guardsmen were involved in the search for the three runaways. The fugitive’s short-lived freedom lasted only seven days ending on Sunday, September 13, 1981.

Shortly following the capture of the last two, and soon to once again be

inmates, Betty Bray and Ralph Pogue used their cameras to capture the moment thus preserving the event for the foreseeable throng of curious newspaper readers. As Noel resident, John Greer, read subsequent newspaper accounts of the seven days in September, he came to realize how near in proximity to his hilltop home the path taken by the bad men had come.

Greer hadn’t taken the potential threat posed by the convicts that seriously as he leisurely barbecued on one cool Ozark evening prior to their capture. He did however rest his best locked and loaded shotgun against a nearby pecan tree while he turned the steaks on the charcoal fueled fire; just in case.

For McDonald Countians, the week in September of 1981, later touted as Missouri’s most extensive manhunt ever, was interesting, but not earth shattering. After all, these were the same people who twenty years prior gave nary the slightest thought to seceding, albeit for only a brief period of time, from the State of Missouri while embracing the name, McDonald Territory.

Your McDonald County Newspaper Wednesday, September 16, 1981 BONE TIRE after the long three-day chase in McDonald County is 32-year-old Everett Cameron, the second fugative caught. Officers are Trooper Bob Harper, of the Missouri Highway Patrol; Deputies Wayne Stout and Lou Harmon, of McDonals County Sheriff's Department.

June • July 2017 | 73

FH

ROM the

OLLOW

As Easy as Whitewash

BY WES FRANKLIN

If you're feeling particularly Tom Sawyer-ish this summer, try making and using your own whitewash.

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I recently did this with the youngin's as a way to keep them busy and to spruce up a garden fence. It's extremely simple: All you need is about 6-8 cups of masonry lime, 2-3 cups of salt, and 1 gallon of water. At first I didn't think it was going to be enough for the job, but the thing about whitewash is it is extremely thin.

It's not like paint, but more like gray water. In fact, gray is just the color it will be when you mix it, which at first had me

wondering if I did it right. I wondered even more when we applied it to the wood pallet slats that make up my fence.

It went on clear. It looked like we doing nothing more than wetting the posts.

However, by the time we made it all the way back around to where we started, the whitewash had dried and the wood was a nice pale off-white. I went ahead and applied a few more coats.

Now, of course, whitewash will last longer if used in interior spaces, such as inside barns and sheds and chicken coops and whatnot. However, I figured if Tom Sawyer whitewashed a fence – or rather tricked his friends into doing it – I'd whitewash one too and see how long it lasted in the elements. I can testify that after several hard rainstorms, with some warm days in between, it hasn't faded as yet. I figure it's probably an annual job – and most likely was in Tom Sawyer's day too.

Most of all, it was a fun outdoor activity for my two boys, and kept them out of trouble for an hour or so, although toward the middle of the job I did find myself alone. Huh. Come to think of it, maybe the boys pulled a Tom Sawyer on their ole' man. It was supposed to be THEIR project, after all.

Well, I had fun anyway.

Speaking of Tom Sawyer, it was the first “real” book I ever truly read as a young child, after an uncle gave me a copy. I mean the Samuel Clemens' (Mark Twain) original, unabridged version, of course. My six-year-old son wants to read it, as a short kids' version of the same book has hooked his interest.

In fact, when I told him we would be whitewashing a fence, he immediately said “just like Tom Sawyer?” What boy wouldn't love Tom Sawyer and his adventures? Samuel Clemens really captured that “boy spirit”. I'm glad he remembered it as an adult. I really recommend reading it even now, if you never have, and passing it along to a boy you know in your family. The reading level is probably about middle school.

After that young boy in your life reads “The Adventurers of Tom Sawyer” he just MIGHT want to help you whitewash a fence someday. Or trick you into doing it all yourself.

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Ozark

JUNE • JULY 2017

Hills Hollows C E L E B R AT I N G O U R H E R I TA G E , N E I G H B O R S A N D R U R A L L I V I N G I N T H E H E A R T O F A M E R I C A

10

Good Food on the Move Why I stop For Food Trucks

Ozark Hills&Hollows

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Hill Talk Still Alive and Well in the Ozarks

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Feel the Chill Homemade Popsicles to Keep You Cool

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Uncork Good Wine Here A Tour of Area Wineries

JUNE • JULY 2017

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