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About The Columbia press. (Astoria, Or.) 1949-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 27, 2020)
The Columbia Press November 27, 2020 Senior Moments with Emma Edwards Nothing is broken this Thanksgiving I wish I’d heard Sen. Rand Paul on TV early enough to share his comments about lim- iting the number of Thanksgiv- ing guests. It seems some people felt they should be able to have 15 peo- ple for dinner, since that’s how many were allowed to be at a funeral. So, on Thanksgiving Day, some declared it a funer- al celebration for that beautiful turkey on the table, who cer- tainly gave his all for us. Many of you have been watching your share of Christ- mas movies lately, as I am. It’s surprising what one can learn or pick up from a fun movie, things both serious and so true. One movie I especially en- joyed shows a grown man tell- ing the story of when he broke his arm as a child and how he became sad and discouraged. It was Christmastime and he tells of how his mom took one of her beautiful prized angel ornaments off the Christmas tree and purposely dropped it on the floor. It broke into many pieces. She carefully picked up and glued all the pieces togeth- er and it proudly hung on the tree ever after. She told him it was to remind him always that broken things can be made whole again. During the many, many months we’ve been in this COVID-19 pandemic, many of us have had days when we wondered whether our broken society -- our very everyday lives -- would ever be put back together again. Try to think of that broken ornament story and realize that, yes, our lives will be normal and put back together some day. We mustn’t ever give up hope! Let’s try to find more humor to share and learn to laugh again. One lady said she was think- ing of getting a tattoo on her 80th birthday. When asked what she would put on it, she said “My name and address of course.” I was told recently that by the time you’re 80, you’ve already learned everything. Now you just have to remember it! The other day, I was sitting in my recliner remembering the olden days and how we so enjoyed going out to eat in a fa- vorite restaurant. Remember, as we walked in, we were ever so politely asked “Smoking or nonsmoking?” With all the politicking going on, maybe the next thing we’ll be asked is “Immunized or not immunized”? Or how about “Want to sit in the Democrat or the Republican section?” Never fear, God is able to fix all of this and put the pieces back together again. I’ll leave you with a couple good quotes. “Retirement: It’s nice to get out of the rat race, but you have to learn to get along with less cheese.” — Gene Perret “There’s never enough time to do all the nothing you want to do.” -- Bill Watterson, Calvin and Hobbes comic strip cre- ator. That reminds me of the sto- ry of the lady who asked her husband what he was going to do “today.” He responded with one word, “nothing.” She sweetly retorted, “But, dear, you did that yesterday.” To which her husband quickly an- swered, “Yeah, but I am not fin- ished yet.” Oh, yes, we all know that feel- ing, especially now. Relax! We still have 28 days left until Christmas! Think good thoughts and laugh mer- rily! 7 Group helps needy, seeks people to ‘adopt’ families A group from Warrenton Hammond Healthy Kids put together Thanksgiving food baskets for those in need. The nonprofit community benefit group partnered with Warrenton-Hammond School District and Walmart to pro- vide all the fixings for a Thanks- giving meal for the families of 138 Warrior students. The group also is organiz- ing a holiday Adopt-A-Fami- ly project. Those who would like to be included on the list of po- tential families that will be adopted are asked to contact Warrenton Grade School. Those who would like to adopt a family should send an email to warrentonwishes@ warrentonk12.org. They’ll be matched with a family and given gift suggestions. Participate can drop their items off at the school until Dec. 16. Courtesy Debbie Morrow Those who helped put food baskets together include Walmart Manager Rey Sotomayer, Debbie Morrow of Warrenton Ham- mond Healthy Kids, school district Business Manager Mike Moha and Walmart Customer Service Manager Eva Puckett. Mayor’s Message by Henry Balensifer III Community provides attitude of gratitude This was the hardest May- or’s Message I’ve ever had to compose. These are difficult days, and it’s tough to know what to say. I’m not going to write a snow job on how wonderful this season is, or some ad- monishment to stay away from each other that every- one has heard a million times by now. Instead, I’m going to write about Warrenton and what we’ve got going for us. We’ve got great residents, who are caring for their neighbors and families. We’ve got great teachers, who are doing all they can to navigate this messy time for learning. We’ve got great city work- ers, who ensure that the toi- lets flush and the water is clean, among other things. We’ve got great volunteer firefighters, who show up to answer medical calls and put out fires. We’ve got great entrepre- neurs, who are venturing to build new lives and busi- nesses in our town — or are finding creative ways to con- tinue serving our community during this time. We’ve got the volunteers of Spruce Up Warrenton, who continue to brighten up our city with their energy and ideas. In short, we’ve got people like YOU. You are what make Warren- ton the place I’m proud to call home. You are what makes Warrenton special. You are why I find being mayor re- warding. Thank you for being a War- rentonian — and, by exten- sion, my neighbor. Special columns in The Columbia Press Every week: Senior Moments with Emma Edwards Week 1: Here’s to Your Health from CMH Week 2: Financial Focus with Adam Miller Week 3: Off the Shelf by Kelly Knudsen Final week: Mayor’s Message by Henry Balensifer