On the bookshelf in my bedroom sits a frame containing a yellowed Family Circus cartoon. The drawing shows the disheveled mom trying to corral her four small children. Meanwhile, a well-meaning - but not terribly helpful - elderly lady gives the stereotypical advice: Enjoy them every minute. Before you can turn around, they’ll be grown.”
I’ve had that picture for more than two decades, probably when the fourth of my seven children arrived. And while I likely smirked when I received it, there is a reason that advice continues to apply. Because it is true.
It is why we say “the days are long, but the years are short.”
It is why we say “time flies when you are having fun.” Heck, time flies even when you aren’t having fun. Ask any mom.
But whether you are in the midst of changing diapers non-stop or building a career or just trying to get by, the days can slip by seemingly in the blink of an eye. Followed by months going by in a blur. And before you know it, years have passed.
This is where intentionality comes into play. Unless we intentionally make the effort to enjoy the moment or to reach out to someone, time - and life - can slip by so quickly.
And that is how I recently ended up in Texas, despite less than perfect circumstances like a pandemic.
As my 25th anniversary approached, I knew I didn’t want to buy my husband, Jon, yet another gift that I would have to dust or wash or add to the clutter at our house.
Instead, I reached out to the best man from our wedding, Mike, who had been my husband’s college roommate, to reconnect. It had been 23 years since we had seen him in person, when my husband had served as the best man in Mike’s wedding.
While now is not ideal for just about anything, everything from travel itinerary to days off from work lined up. So last weekend, the three of us caught up on two decades of our lives, from vacations to jobs, even stupid vehicle purchases. We discovered that all our kids are avid swimmers, some at the collegiate level.
In the end, it was like we hadn’t missed a beat, much less decades. There was some regret that we hadn’t been able to see each other’s kids grow up and many birthdays and anniversary had been missed. But we left with an appreciation and a hopefulness, knowing that we had reconnected and would do better in the future to maintain contact.
Afterward, I wondered how we managed to miss so many years of each other’s lives, but it was never intentional. It is just life.
Personally, we got busy raising kids, working and volunteering, and maintaining a house. Our friend Mike was busy raising his own family, moving around the country and serving more than a dozen tours overseas during his 25-year military career.
As my husband said on the way home, perhaps this was the first time we could have connected and we needed to appreciate that it happened at all.
I’ve said it before and I’ll continue to say it: There is never a perfect time to do something. If you wait for it to be perfect, it will never happen.
We could have waited for the pandemic to be over, but who knows when or if things will return to normal. We could have waited for all of us to retire, but who knows when or if that will happen. If I think I have a risky lifestyle by riding my bike down a highway with semis barrelling by us at 70 mph, that’s relatively safe compared to our friend who flies helicopters for the border patrol catching drug runners.
I am not saying you need to hop on a plane to visit your long-lost aunt in another state or drain your savings to see your childhood friend across the globe.
Perhaps it is a phone call to an elderlly neighbor to let them know you are thinking of them. Maybe it is taking a dessert to that mom who hasn’t had five minutes to wash her hair. Or just dropping a card in the mail to your friend to let them know you are thinking of them. Finding a hand-written note in the mailbox is 10-times better than a stack of bills or election fliers.
Like I said, there is never a perfect time...there is only time...time to be intentional.
McCook's last hometown bakery closed this past week, leaving a void not just for donuts but for connections.
Many organizations and businesses in McCook offer the opportunity to recycle, reuse and repair items that may just end up in the trash.
Organizer for Buffalo Commons Storytelling Festival and former librarian named Oct 2025 volunteer of the month.
McCook's Third Thursdays were created to get businesses and organizations involved and designed to create life-long memories for the community.
Long-time community advocate Barb Ostrum received the Sept 2025 McCook Volunteer of the Month award.
We need to celebrate our young people while they are here and encourage them to return.
While some like myself appreciate a rainy day, others dread them for a variety of reasons. We need to be empathetic as interact with others.
MCFF Fall Grant Deadline is Oct. 1. Complete list of former recipients on MCFF website
With so much going, it is time for a “This, That and the Other Thing” column, where we will cover several topics, not very deeply but hopefully with a sense of humor as we clean up and prepare for a busy week in McCook. *** McCook again made state and national news this week for ice. This time, it was in the form of hail that pounded the community for hours upon hours. Conversations this week begin with “where were you….?” or “how many windows did you lose?” And while they may be legitimate and are offering their services, it is like vultures with all the roofing repair and dent removal businesses which have descended upon McCook following the storm. As city officials noted, do your due diligence with any company doing repairs for you and follow the old adage, which is old and still around because it’s true: If something seems to be too good to be true, it probably is. And one last note on the storm, we need to be careful what we ask for. As storm after storm approaches McCook and then splits in two to go around the town, we finally got one to roll right over us. The storm liked McCook so much it slowed down and just there. I was in Lincoln during the storm and trying to determine when I would drive home. I thought the weather app had frozen or the radar was broken because every time I looked, the storm was still sitting over McCook, doing its damage. I guess we can be thankful the next time a storm seemingly just goes around us. *** We are in the thick of McCook’s Heritage Days celebration. Congratulations to all the Heritage Days Royalty, which was announced at the MNB Bank Mixer this week. A special shout-out to Bill Donze, better known as Mr. Bill and his wife, Kathy, who were honored as royalty for their impact in McCook. As many know, Mr. Bill is fighting cancer and the prognosis isn’t good. The chances of him selling snow-cones and candy out of his van next summer near the McCook Aquatic Center are not good. One judge of his impact was the response to my column about Mr. Bill a few months ago. The post was shared thousands of times, viewed nearly 70,000 times with just as many comments by people sharing their fond memories of Mr. Bill. So when you see Mr. Bill riding down Norris in the convertible this weekend in the Heritage Days parade, send extra prayers and well-wishes to the man who has brought so much joy to so many kids - and adults too - over the years. *** Continuing on the Heritage Days theme, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that the McCook Rotary Club is tossing all egos and formality out the window this weekend. As the president of the McCook Rotary Club, I invite everyone to at least watch, if not participate, in the Rotary’s first inflatable costume relay race on Saturday as part of the festivities in Norris Park. These are those giant, blow-up costumes you usually see around Halloween. The first costumes were usually T-Rexes but now there is everything imaginable available as a design. With the idea for the race originally conceived by Melanie Goodenberger, she has purchased everything from corn on the cob to a cowboy riding a chicken. This is a fund-raiser for the Rotary Club with a cost of just $20 for a team of four to participate in the relay race. But it is also a chance to giggle, perhaps make a fool of yourself and just have fun. Come to the park Saturday afternoon for the Wiener Dog races and stay for the Rotary Relay races. While the dogs will already be close to the ground, the relay race participants will likely just end up on the ground. *** With so much going on in McCook this week, I debated whether there should be another activity the next week but the response has already been great for the Lied’s Arts Across Nebraska’s next production in McCook. Hosted by the McCook Creative District, the Omaha Street Percussion ensemble will perform at the Fox Theater on Wednesday, Sept. 24. There is a matinee showing at 10:30 a.m. but I will be up-front…we are testing the capacity of the Fox with every seat already claimed with students. If that is the only show you can make, please come and we’ll find you a seat but it may be those up in the rafters. Otherwise, please plan to attend the 7 p.m. show on Sept. 24. And even better, there is no cost thanks to the Kimmel Foundation and the Friends of the Lied. This is a busy week and a busy weekend but this is a great opportunity to sit back and enjoy a fun, entertaining evening of live music.
Most likely, we aren't going to be good at something at the start. But that shouldn't stop us from trying.
