Thanks Larry

Leave the screen, find a stream.

I wasn’t in the best mood upon waking today. Luckily I checked in with Larry’s page this morning and soon all was well. I admit to being an inveterate navel-gazer, so when I pause to look around, I am often humbled by the manifestations of beauty and resilience that surround me.

I was reminded how fortunate I was to discover “the out-of-doors” as a kid at Y-camp in Boone, Iowa in the 60’s. Equally grateful that my first Jazz-Artist-In-Residence position took me to Missoula, Montana where this nature thing got real serious.

Plopped right in the middle of the Bitteroot River valley we lived in the western Montana cities of Missoula and Butte in the early 80’s. The entire western third of the state was gorgeous beyond my imagining. In time though, I grew to deeply appreciated the high plains beauty of Eastern Montana hamlets like Wolf Point and Havre where we did residencies in the schools.

(Those who appreciate classic western authors might note that while living in Butte, Montana, our house on Platinum street was just a few blocks from the late A.B. Guthrie and his family. We were in attendance when A.B. received the Governor’s Arts Award in 1981. (The immensely talented composer, pianist and former band mate Phil Aaberg was honored with the GAA in 1995.)

Something about living alongside that kind of natural beauty changes you. I never stop looking for these manifestations of life, no matter where I happen to be. Once again, thanks to IWC stalwart Larry Stone for reminding me to leave the screen and go sit by a stream.

The Arlee house 1979-1983. On the Salish/Kootenai reservation near Missoula. The kids loved it. Easter egg hunts were crazy.

Northern California brought even more confirmation of Nature’s springtime Celebration (from Baltimore Canyon, Larkspur CA.)

Springtime at the C Street House San Rafael, California.

Where would we be without the Banana Slug?

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Back Here in Des Moines, A walk in Union Park can reveal subtle wonders too.

No words…just gratitude. Thanks Larry.

..and yes, it is still Jazz Appreciation Month =-)

[Photography ©Dartanyan Brown]

9:07 AM CST - Apple blossoms on the verge….In Des Moines! Spring ‘24

2:14 PM CST - …Voila. The first apple blossom! 04/14/24

Hey Michael it looks like we’re on the right track!

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Iowa Writers’ Collaborative

Below is a list of the members of the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative. Please support their work by sharing and subscribing. Paid subscribers are invited to attend real-time events and occasional Zoom calls among our writers. Your support keeps this reader-only supported service going. 

Nicole Baart: This Stays Here, Sioux Center

Ray Young Bear: From Red Earth Drive, Meskwaki Settlement

Laura Belin: Iowa Politics with Laura Belin, Windsor Heights

Tory Brecht: Brecht’s Beat, Quad Cities

Doug Burns: The Iowa Mercury, Carroll

Dave Busiek: Dave Busiek on Media, Des Moines

Iowa Writers’ Collaborative, Roundup

Steph Copley: It Was Never a Dress, Johnston

Art Cullen: Art Cullen’s Notebook, Storm Lake

Suzanna de Baca: Dispatches from the Heartland, Huxley

Debra Engle: A Whole New World, Madison County

Arnold Garson: Second Thoughts, Okoboji and Sioux Falls

Julie Gammack: Julie Gammack’s Iowa Potluck, Des Moines and Okoboji

Joe Geha: Fern and Joe, Ames

Jody Gifford: Benign Inspiration, West Des Moines

Rob Gray: Rob Gray’s Area, Ankeny

Nik Heftman: The Seven Times, Los Angeles and Iowa

Beth Hoffman: In the Dirt, Lovilia

Chris Jones, Chris’s Substack, Des Moines

Pat Kinney: View from Cedar Valley, Waterloo

Fern Kupfer: Fern and Joe, Ames

Robert Leonard: Deep Midwest: Politics and Culture, Bussey

Letters from Iowans, Iowa

Darcy Maulsby: Keepin’ It Rural, Calhoun County

Tar Macias: Hola Iowa, Iowa

Alison McGaughey, The Inquisitive Quad Citizen, Quad Cities

Kurt Meyer: Showing Up, St. Ansgar

Vicki Minor, Relatively Minor, Winterset

Wini Moranville: Wini’s Food Stories, Des Moines

Jeff Morrison: Between Two Rivers, Cedar Rapids

Kyle Munson: Kyle Munson’s Main Street, Des Moines

Jane Nguyen: The Asian Iowan, West Des Moines

John Naughton: My Life, in Color, Des Moines

Chuck Offenburger: Iowa Boy Chuck Offenburger, Jefferson and Des Moines

Barry Piatt: Piatt on Politics Behind the Curtain, Washington, D.C.

Dave Price: Dave Price’s Perspective, Des Moines

Macey Shofroth: The Midwest Creative, Norwalk

Larry Stone: Listening to the Land, Elkader

Mary Swander: Mary Swander’s Buggy Land, Kalona

Mary Swander: Mary Swander’s Emerging Voices, Kalona

Cheryl Tevis: Unfinished Business, Boone County

Ed Tibbetts: Along the Mississippi, Davenport

Kali White VanBaale, 988: Mental Healthcare in Iowa, Bondurant

Teresa Zilk: Talking Good, Des Moines