Category Archives: Columns

Harvest dreams Part 2

November 5, 2020Bob, Columns, Farmingsusanmanzke

The bad and the ugly with harvest ended with friends saving the day.

Bob worked hard and hated to ask for help, but in the end, that’s what he had to do after more problems occurred with our combine.

I remember freezing as I helped outside with harvest. I was just a helper. Bob ran ideas past me and I gave him my two cents, but he cast the deciding vote as to what we would do in the end.

Sometimes I came up with a solution he never expected–I often helped by throwing out crazy ideas.

Harvest dreams

November 4, 2020Bob, Columns, Sunnybook Farmsusanmanzke

This 2008 column is about a big combine breakdown. It took another farmer stopping by to notice the problem.

Below is my reading of Harvest Dreams–it could also be named Harvest nightmares.

The combine problem wasn’t resolved this day. Parts for the old machine were hard to find.

Come back tomorrow for the outcome of Harvest Dreams

Where a farmer finds beauty

November 3, 2020Columns, Farming, Memoriessusanmanzke

I wrote this column for Thanksgiving forty years ago. The size of the tractors have gotten larger, but most of the rest has stayed the same.

Farmers find beauty in the barn, in the field, and standing next to a cow. It’s all there for them to appreciate. I hope you enjoy my musings from November 1980.

Hoping you too find beauty in different places.

Maybe it’s a sparkly rock, or a child’s toothless grin, or a kitten getting into trouble again, there’s beauty and fun found in the oddest places.

Saving Family Stories

November 2, 2020Columns, Family, Memoriessusanmanzke

I’ve been encouraging people to save family stories for years. This 1988 column proves that my campaign started many years ago.

I hope you enjoy my Dad’s stories that I shared all those years ago.

I adapted the broken cookie story and used it in my novel, Chicken Charlie’s Year. It was one of my favorites as a child.

I hope you save and share some of your stories. They are pieces of this countries history.

My dear old friend, Wendel

November 1, 2020Columns, creativity, funsusanmanzke

Some people may remember my friend, Wendel. He was my constant companion in the late 80s and 1990s.

I hope you enjoy hearing about Wendel today.

Wendel is still a good friend, even if he hasn’t seen the light of day for a while.

Maybe our friendship will become a book. I’ve been thinking about a picture book about Wendel for a long time. I’ll ask him if he’s ready. If Wendel agrees, I’ll start working on a new project with my friend, Wendel.

Susan Manzke

Writer, Speaker, All-Around Good Person