Now & Then by Lorna Marquardt

Some people read a book to relax. Others exercise, and there are those who get a massage. How do you relax? For me, if I am feeling stressed or anxious, my therapy of choice is to write. Sometimes I just write random thoughts. I have written a few books, one children’s book and one about…

While growing up in the late 40’s and 50’s, I lived in a farmhouse in Marion. In the summer, our house got pretty uncomfortable at times. We did not have air conditioning. We did have a black metal fan. The downstairs bedrooms had screens. We also had a screen door. There were nights when we…

We recently returned from a wonderful time vacationing at our favorite place to visit, Deadwood, South Dakota. We traveled with our son Dan, our daughter-in-law Julie, their sweet little Shih-tzu Remy, hubby and me. Julie was our designated driver. She loves driving and does an excellent job. Son has a great deal of responsibility at…

Be back soon. Look for Lorna’s column next week!

The Bible gives us many examples of good mothers. Mary, mother of Jesus, was the most well-known mother in the Bible. Mary conceived Jesus, the Son of God, through the Holy Spirit. She was visited by the angel Gabriel, who informed her of the unique privilege she had of bearing God’s Son. Mary responded with…

During the recent flooding, several groups stepped up to assist others. One of those groups was area fire departments. A fire department is critical to communities, but they aren’t often recognized for their amazing efforts. Did you know Shawano’s first fire department was a volunteer bucket brigade? Historical records indicate every able-bodied man in the…

Monday (April 13) – I often play Menominee bingo on Mondays. It is Senior night. Seniors receive a discount. I often have the opportunity to visit with other senior players that night. However, there were storm warnings for later in the evening, and I opted to stay home and watch American Idol (my favorites are…