Celebration 125 years in the making

I make no apologies for my love of the time-honored, the traditional, the things that harken back to a simpler time.

That's why I enjoyed, so immensely, the quasquicentennial celebration held this past weekend in Everly.

All the things that make life so great here in the Midwest were bundled together.

Family?

Check.

History?

Check.

Great food?

Check.

Friends, some old, some new?

Check.

Some of my favorite memories as a child are of gathering with family and friends for community celebrations. I recall with fondness sitting in a park, shaded by ancient oaks, with the Shell Rock River meandering through the small town of Northwood, where my parents grew up.

Picnic baskets were heaped with food, a slow pitch softball game drew our fathers, and the kids ran about like wild things. No one worried about where we were, there weren't that many places to get into mischief. Our parents had an "it takes a village" approach to child care. The child of one was the child of all.

And I recall at night, with the sounds of a street dance wafting through the summer air, leaning on my father's shoulder as we sat on the grass and watched fireworks light up the night sky.

That's been, I must admit, many years ago.

But, as I watched children roam in packs, as children do, through the streets of Everly this past weekend, and parents gather to greet old friends, I felt that time had stood still.

The scene may have changed, but the feeling was the same.

The world moves pretty fast. It can be a scary place. So, it's nice to have a touchstone, something to reassure you that, at the core, people are good.

How can you be depressed while working the pie stand for the local church?

Drew and I spent a couple of hours on duty, cutting up some of the countless homemade pies and serving hungry patrons on Saturday. Pie baking, especially in a small-town Lutheran church congregation, can be a competitive sport. I've never seen so many perfect meringues, so many flaky crusts. Top it off with a cup of coffee and you've got the quintessential Lutheran manna from heaven. It's what we do.

Decry the state of the economy?

Do it on Monday. Don't be blue while watching a magician magically pull a bunny from a box that was empty just a split second before.

Worry about history dying as young people leave home for brighter lights?

Not while strolling under sunny skies in the peaceful Lone Tree Cemetery where the community's young people joined their elders to bring history to life during the cemetery walk.

While folks talk a lot about "quality of life," it's rare to see just what that means spelled out as clearly as it was this weekend. And it's nice to know that, while it may be in the spotlight seldom, it's there for the taking every day.