View From a Prairie Home

by Hege Hernfindahl, Columnist

Finally, finally, finally…fall is here. The air is crisp and has a smell of something faintly overly-mature. The garden  is becoming a place of such a  total wilderness that I have given up and let myself feel satisfied by what I have already harvested and frozen. After all the plants die, we will go there and spend a day cleaning it up, putting on mulch and let it sit until next year.

The colors have changed; some of the ash trees sport brilliantly yellow leaves and the virginia creepers that I try unsuccessfully to combat are busily encircling the box elders covering them in vivid reds. The grass is now a muted green and the prairie is full of bluestems, which now seem almost red. And the fall sky on these wonderful, precious days is so blue, I wish I could somehow imitate it in my pathetic attempts of painting, but only a true artist could do that.

I pull on a pair of jeans and two sweatshirts as I head out for my morning walk which now takes place later in the day due to the darker mornings. I continue down our half-a-mile-long driveway, my mind full of the miracles of God’s world. We have “no trespassing” signs around, which I used to think was unfriendly and un-neighborly, but after a few run-ins during hunting season with random strangers with guns, I see the necessity of the signs. As I approach our mailbox, I am suddenly aware of something missing. A few days ago, we put up a lawn sign with our choice (and hope) for president close to the road. We didn’t think it would change anybody’s mind. I think there can’t be too many undecided potential voters this far into the campaign season. But we try in our own quiet way to promote “our” candidate. It is a little scary, to tell you the truth, to put our sign so close to the road. It’s like putting our hearts on our sleeves so to speak. It makes us vulnerable in some way. Shows the world where our hearts are. And when we put up the sign, we felt brave. We also felt it was our right. We put the sign far enough away from the township road that it wouldn’t interfere with traffic. We put it on our land that even sprouted “no trespassing” signs. Besides, we live in a democracy where the constitution guarantees the right to free speech. We were just exercising this right.

But the sign was gone! I looked around. But no, the wind hadn’t blown it over and I am sure the deer or coyotes hadn’t munched on it and inadvertently carried it away. I felt sad and almost violated. Who would do such a thing and why? Isn’t trespassing and taking down a sign a crime? Grant suggested it was a fellow Harris supporter who just thought our sign was wasted next to a gravel road and they would put it in a more prominent location. I hope he is right; my sweet, positive husband, who has carried us both through some of the darkest days of our lives.

We decided to try again. Putting our hearts on our sleeves. Daring to show the few people driving on our township roads our hope for the future. I worry about what will happen, but I try to be brave. I am reminded of the message our dear pastor gave us in church last Sunday; to try not to worry, to put our trust in Jesus and I am reminded of a hymn we love to sing: “Have no fear, little flock….for the Father has chosen to give you the kingdom.” And I swallow hard, concentrate on the kingdom around me in the air that is so easy to breathe and I feel a little less afraid.