At 40, Life Begins to Drag

Hello Folks. How does it seem to be 40?

I should know, I just reached that milestone, but I was too busy to notice any difference.

As far as I can tell the physical change is negligible. I can do as much work today as I could 20 years ago and as much as I could 10 years ago.

Mentally, I suppose I have grown more conservative  I really believe I am wiser (though some may dispute that). If I am not wiser I am retrogressing and haven't much to live for in the next 40 years.

On the other hand if the past 40 have shown substantial progress the next 40 should be even more interesting. I want to live to be 80, my plans are set accordingly, with a certain amount of hedging in case it doesn't pan out that way.

Don't ask me if I am prepared to die, I'm not!

I am prepared to live. I enjoy living, as much as anyone I know. I don't envy any man. While I am sojorning upon this earth I intend to enjoy it to the fullest.

I have found that there is more "honest – to – goodness" joy in helping my fellow-men than there is in accumulating a lof of material wealth.

There is more satisfaction in turing the other cheek and watching the opponent's frustration in so doing than in squaring off.

There is often more value in "rolling with the punch" and coming back with my own lates on than there is in never giving ground.

I have found that there is more satisfaction in being in the arean than there is sitting on the sidelines watching. You grow strong in activity, weak in just watching.

I have learned that blues are for the idler. To the one who is constantly active (and we can all be) blues are foreign. The activity of course, must always be constructive.

I realize that you can learn more from the laws of nature than you can out of books. Wonder if that is why nearly all great men have lived near the "grass roots."

All in all, it is a great, wide, wonderful world. And why should it not be? If a man has a family who love him, a home to dwell in, friends to visit with, soil to till, a job to do, enough to eat and the assurance that there's a "Man Upstairs" who will give you help any time he really needs it, what more could he ask?

If you job seems too much for you, remember, most of the important tasks in the world are being done by people not quite up to them.

Twelve things to remember
1– The value of time.
2– The success of perseverance.
3– The pleasure of working.
4– The dignity of simplicity.
5– The value of character.
6– The power of kindness.
7– The influence of example.
8– The obligation of duty.
9– The wisdom of economy.
10– The virtue of patience.
11– The important of talents.
12– The joy of origination.

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My birthday was May 5. As I told you we were all head over heals in work so I didn't even think about a birthday cake.

The next day being Sunday, we had dinner at the chapel with the congregation.

I sat down to eat before a beautifully decorated cake and one candle on it. I couldn't quite figure out that it was for me (what with on candle).

Mrs. Petersen explained it this way:
"Life begins at forty. Therefore if your life is just beginning you can't be more than one."

I finally got it figured out, I think.

Artist Felt 'Old West'

EDWIN B. PETERSEN

Hello Folks!!!!!! — J. R. Williams is dead. He is the artist who wrote and drew "Out Our Way". For as long as I can remember I have enjoyed his comic square. He was also the creater of the comics "The Worry Wart", and "Born Thirty Years Too Soon". They were all very good, But the one that always took my attention was "Out Our Way". I think the only ones who got the real 'charge' out of "Out Our Way" are the ones who have had a little taste of the 'wide open spaces' Williams had an uncanny way of injecting into that strip what he felt. I doubt if there will ever be another equal to him, as far as producing "Out Our Way".

One of his creations that I will probably never forget is one that he drew over 20 years ago. It was about an old cowboy who had just killed a coyote. The coyote whelps were wandering around the den; the old cowpoke in a nostalgic mood was looking at the lead mother and saying something, that as I recall went like this.

"Born to be a killer, thief and general all round pest;
But I kind of hate to kill you, brother, cause your part of our old west.
You and me are kinda partners, with our backs agin' the wall
In the scene that's nearly over, and the curtains 'bout to fall.
(The cartoons will be continued by reuse — Editor)

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Men are like tacks — useful if that have good heads and are headed in the right direction.

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Now that school is out; I would like to give you graduates a quiz.

How many of you know that before there is a job available to you there has to be $12,000 or more put into working power in order to provide for you a job? No jobs don't just grow on trees, as so many of us are inclined to believe. It therefore behooves all of us to see to that we store away a portion of our earnings and invest them in something that will create jobs and give us a nest egg for the shadows of our years. I think a good rule would be for us to store away about 10 per cent of our earnings. To those who have steady jobs and no dependents a lot more could be saved perhaps up to 50 per cent.

Seems to me that one of the greatest evils today is the concentration of wealth in the hands of a few. We all need to share in the creation and rewards of earned wealth. If we all took a greater interest in such matters there would be less poverty and we would not be as apt to complain about our lot in life.

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Wasn't that a wonderful centennial pageant? The ones responsible for it's creation are certainly to be congratulated for their efforts.

One thing I am still wondering is, 'did those Owatonna girls get back to their home all right?' And OH! those pretty white pantilettes.

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A report released by the Senate Agriculture Committee figures that the Trade Development Act (Public Law 480) increased the prices of wheat about 9 cents per bushel. Rice prices were helped by at least 27 cents per 100 pounds. Corn and barley gained 1 cent. Other commodities were helped also.

The thing we have to watch now is for some ambitious politician to try to make the law permanent or to extend it beyond it's practical limits. Public Law 480 was never intended to be a permanent thing; it is to be used only as a medicine to counteract the bad effects of high price supports. If this law becomes extended beyond another year or two it will do more harm than good it has done.

We the people must keep ourselves informed and let the men in office know what we want for the best interest of the nation. Let's not let short-sighted interests keep is from doing that which is for our ultimate good. Politicians are after all only human and we can't expect them to see all things clearly.

Daughter's Favorite Pop

HELLO FOLKS! — It seems that I am my youngest daughter’s favorite father.  If that sounds strange, let me remind you that I have very little competition in that field.

It is comical to note how Merilee favors me. If I accidentally hurt her while we are playing she never tells on me. She may go crying to her mother but when she is asked who hurt her she never tells. That is the sign that it was me.

Last Thursday night when we were having family hour, Merilee was passing out the candy. When she came to me she first gave me the same amount as the rest of them. Then as a sudden after-thought she came back and said, “Daddy is bigger, he has to have more,” and she haned me a big handful of candy.

This goes on all the time, and do I love it? You bet I do. I get abused enough around here from everybody else that I need a morale booster once in a while.

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The school’s valedictorian and the senior-class knucklehead met years later, the dumb one driving fine car, wearing fancy clothes and diamonds. His opposite, threadbare by comparison, asked, “How have you succeeded so well, Joe, when you were the poorest student?” “I dunno,” was the reply, “except that I’m a salesman and I buy for a dollar and sell for five — You just can’t beat that old four percent.”

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BY THE time you read this column I will have spent a few days more in St. Paul working on the state Farm Bureau resolutions. I was appointed to the position last winter and we have spent two days, so far, on them.

I consider this an important calling. There is no organization to my knowledge that goes to more expense and bother to try and set in motion the policies and attitudes of the various states and nations law makers.

People are called from various fields of experience to relate their views and it is the duty of the resolutions committee to unwind the facts and come up with wise ideas to be handed the members of the delegate body at convention time for their consideration.

Once the resolutions are formulated it is also the responsibility of the state resolutions committee to answer questions and explain to the convention how the certain ideas were arrived at.

While many organizations come up with many good ideas and these ideas are fought out in the various legislatures and with what we hope is to the benefit of the citizens.

It is my belief that those of the Farm Bureau are the soundest over the years. They are not always the most popular at the time but they generally prove to be right in the long run. The rules are those of fair play and charity toward all. With the desire for a minimum of control and regulation to the insure properity.

Transcribed by Vera Smith

Art Displayed On Back Door

HELLO FOLKS! — Some people born with silver spoons in their mouths never stir for themselves.

It isn’t the pounds of steel in a piano that bother people, just the pounds of little people.

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WE HAVE an Art Board in our home. It wasn’t meant to be that; it just happened.

We have a door in the living room that leads to the back porch. We never use it so decided to seal it up. I put in a chunck of ply board and intended to use it as a back-drop for nick-nack shelves. I didn’t get at ordering the shelves for a while.

In the mean-time the girls were looking for a place to display their art. One day when I came in the house there was sign displayed at the top of the doorway saying ART BOARD. Below it were several colorings and drawings. It has remained that way ever since.

Now that it is there we have decided that it beats a nick-nack shelf. Standing at the bottom of it one of our book cases. Zina seems to be the chief artist here; most of the things on the board belong to her.

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OF ALL the many conveniences and services we have in this day and age, one of the very delightful and useful is the mail delivery system.

Sometimes we may not appreciate it completely.  That would be when we get an over abundance of bills, or bad news. For the most part, however, the mail brings news from far off friends, especially at Christmas time. It brings the daily news, much of it that we might have heard over the air waves, but still interesting to read over and confirm what we thought we have heard.

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WE CAN receive a world of information and education. We can learn about people in far off lands, whom we will probably never see. We can receive information of almost any sort; from the latest and most scientific to the ancient and almost forgotten history of the past.

We get our share of mail at Edvera Farm. We subscribe to two dailys, some weeklys, and a host of monthly and bi-monthly papers and magazines. Among them are a good proportion of Agricultural publications such as The Farmer, Successful Farming, Farm Journal, Nations Agriculture, Big Farming, National Hog Farmer, Farm Bureau News, and several others, along with a number of company sponsored magazines such as The Furrow and other publications.

A list of general magazines would include such popular names as Life, Readers Digest and Popular Science.

Then there are quite a few Childrens publications. The Childrens Friend, Boys Life, Exploring and Calling All Girls.

Magazines of sentimental value would include, Guide Posts and Sunshine.  Last, but certainly not least would be the periodicals of spiritual value. The Church News, The Improvement Era, the Instructor and Signs of The Times.

What a wealth of information is delivered to our doors or gates, regardless of wealth or position. The poorest person around can receive a broad education just by subscribing to a few periodicals.

Transcribed by Vera Smith

Another Easy Week

HELLO FOLKS – Last week I got by letting Karen write. So, this week I will let Randy say something he has been trumpeting around here for few weeks.

I might explain that Karen is home.  She has been away for two years except for a week last year.  Karen is going to school at Weber College at Ogden, Utah.  We are glad that she could be home for Christmas.  She didn’t make it last year and it shook her up pretty badly, Karen is one of my favorite daughters.  I have six favorites.  We are very proud of her.  I hope we can be as proud of all our daughters.

Randy is 11, He is the 6^th grade.  Spends every spare minute in the encyclopedia or other books, studying every subject possible.

Randy is also a dreamer.  As you will soon guess.  Here is what he wrote.

SANTA IS OLD FASHIONED

BY RANDY PETERSEN

Santa Claus is getting very old fashioned for this day and age.  He uses old fashioned ways of delivering presents.  Instead of driving a sleigh and reindeer he should be riding in a rocket powered by atomic fuel.

Instead of coming down the chimney into the fireplace (which most homes don’t have any more) he should put presents into a machine that would break down the elements of the gift into radio waves.  When the radio waves reach the receiver, which would be the tree itself, the radio waves would be received at the top of the tree.  As the radio wave goes down the spine of the tree the elements would build up into their proper form, go out the bottom branches and drop under the tree.

Santa’s habits and ways of making presents are old fashioned too.  Instead of having the tiny brick factory with elves in it.  The factory should be big and modern, made out of glass and steel.  And machines should make the presents, instead of elves.

Instead of smoking a pipe he should be smoking a filter cigarette.  Instead of wearing a heavy fur lined coat he should be wearing an insulated nylon-rayon coat.  His beard should be shaved, and he should look attractive and handsome and young.

Santa should have his home on Mars or some other planet and be living in a space needle like the one at the Seattle World’s Fair.  And instead of keeping his records of children in books, he should put them on microfilm.

So-long, Old Time Santa

Transcribed by Vera Smith