Some time ago, after suffering the shocking and unexpected loss of my still young husband, Martijn, while we were living in Europe, I experienced what is called traumatic grief. In addition to a year …

There’s a diversity gap in our outdoor spaces. Participation and attendance at state and national parks is almost 70 percent White. This is alarming considering 40 percent of our national …

Most of us were raised on the American dream. Work hard and you can succeed. We all watched "Rocky" and rooted for the underdog. This is one of those stories.Casa Maria is unique in that it is the …

It was the summer before my junior year at Hamline University in 1977. I had already been named the editor of the Hamline Oracle, Hamline’s student newspaper, for my junior year, and I decided …

Nearly 100,000 of our fellow Minnesotans aren’t allowed to drive. Not because they aren’t old enough, or they have a suspended license, or they pose a danger to themselves or other …

Ron Buhta is the most optimistic and grittiest person I have ever met. He retired 17 years ago, but laughs at himself as he “is now busier than ever." A Vietnam veteran and self-taught artist …

It’s a warm summer afternoon, sun shining through kitchen windows. The front door flies open; kids and dogs come bursting in two by two. Running through the house and right out the back door. …

There are around 8,000 racial covenants still attached to properties in the city of Minneapolis. Since implementing Just Deeds in 2021, a free legal service that assists property owners in removing …

The world is not black and white. But sometimes, it gets reduced to that.All cops are bad.All criminals are bad.All [insert any group] are bad.Those kinds of blanket statements are not helpful. …

All around the country, caregivers and their children are entering school choice season. Here in Minneapolis, the deadline to request a school is Feb. 7. Whether it be a preschool, elementary, middle …

One day as I am writing a draft of this column, I become aware that the U.S. mail has arrived at my house. I bring in the mail. An envelope jumps out at me with the words RETURN TO SENDER. Sad! Those …

HyggeCertainly, the long, cold, dark Minnesota winters can spark a melancholia for some. Yet frigid temperatures and spare daytime hours can also create the mood to hibernate, as other creatures of …

The start of a new year always feels filled with so much promise. Our futures feel expansive and possible. And while so much of our focus shifts to ourselves in the new year, making goals and changes …

The Nokomis Naturescape (NN) is beautiful, but I never knew its importance until today.Vicki Bonk, a self-described “persistent volunteer," began working with a habitat concept for Lake Nokomis …

Ever been accused of having a thin skin? When it comes to maintaining proper body temperature, this old adage is no joke. As we age, our metabolic rate decreases and our skin literally thins. Often, …

As fall turns to winter, you may be looking at the bare, brown branches in your yard and wondering when to cut them back. Overall, the answer is not yet! But there’s lots to think about before …

Our neighborhoods are full of wonderful stories. And for more than a dozen years, I got to tell those stories right here in the Messenger. It was grand. Minnehaha Falls is full of stories. It has …

Each day since writing the last Stories and Journeys column, I have been checking the obituries in the newspapers I read. None of them are mine. So, here I go again.Before starting to write this …

When in the course of human events...* Sometimes coincidence sparks a column. During the second week of October my volunteer work with the ACLU and attending a Guthrie Theater play coincided with …

The cry of an animal in distress caught my attention one warm August morning. I hurried outside. Animal suffering mostly takes place behind closed doors, at factory farms and research labs, but the …