Opinion / Commentary
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Loneliness has health impacts
Nearly every day, I encounter members of our community who are impacted by loneliness. As a behavioral health specialist with St. Charles Sisters Family Clinic, I help patients with mental health concerns like depression or anxiety. When I... — Updated 10/24/2023 Full story
Working to save the Metolius River
Over 30 years ago, biologists realized the Metolius River had a serious problem. As the Forest Service (USFS) moved toward "Ecosystem Management," they recruited botanists, including me, to... — Updated 10/24/2023 Full story
Say no to settling for cookie-cutter lives
In a generation where “celebrating diversity” is the mantra of the day, have you noticed how strikingly similar life has become in our country? Perhaps not quite so much in Sisters, where individuality seems to thrive — thank God! But if yo... — Updated 10/24/2023 Full story
Happiness - why is it so elusive?
“Every man, whatsoever his condition, desires to be happy.” — Saint Augustine The pursuit of happiness is the unavoidable hardwired disposition of every human heart. We were designed to desire true happiness. We can pretend we’ve moved beyon... — Updated 10/17/2023 Full story
Fostering belonging in Sisters schools
As a community we have much to be proud of in Sisters. By most traditional measures, we have one of the strongest school districts in the state. We believe that a comprehensive education grounded in the community’s core values is key to t... — Updated 10/17/2023 Full story
War to the knife
The explosion of intense violence in Israel is a savage spasm in a long-standing frontier conflict. It is often said that “they’ve been fighting each other there for thousands of yea... — Updated 10/17/2023 Full story
Only the lonely
Only the lonely Know the way I feel tonight Only the lonely Know this feeling ain’t right — Roy Orbison Loneliness is a melancholy theme in generations of songs. It’s not just a trope, though... — Updated 10/10/2023 Full story
Another season brings its possibilities and blessings
Feeling the next season on cool morning air, I’m filled with nostalgia for another waning summer. Buddy’s copper coat is fluffing up. Pulling a rubber curry comb from a dusty tack box in the barn, his slick summer hair pulls free as my glo... — Updated 10/3/2023 Full story
Choose your circus
A friend of mine wore a T-shirt the other day exhorting us to "Keep Calm and Circus On." It struck me as an apt slogan for the times, for surely we are living in a circus - though perhaps... — Updated 10/3/2023 Full story
On the trail of the buffalo
“The morning was fair and the plains looked beautifull . . . . The air was pleasant and a vast assemblage of little birds which croud to the groves on the river sung most enchantingly. . . .... — Updated 9/26/2023 Full story
Print is the new vinyl
Last week I headed out to Cody, Wyoming for the annual rendezvous of the chiefs of the Mullen newspapers. Louie Mullen is the majority owner of The Nugget, with myself as minority partner.... — Updated 9/19/2023 Full story
Your teachers are ready!
The Back-to-School Breakfast for teachers and all employees of District 6 took place on August 29. Being on the Sisters School Board I felt an obligation to accept the invitation to attend. Sitting next to a middle school math teacher I was... — Updated 9/12/2023 Full story
Boat Drinks
Our first winter in Sisters in 1993-94 was rough. My wife, Marilyn, and I were newly married and broke. We had plowed all of our sparse funds into moving to Sisters so that Marilyn could... — Updated 9/5/2023 Full story
Building Battle of the Books
A new school year is upon us and with it brings great opportunity. It’s a chance to reflect upon our past and also dream up new visions for our future. I’ve been fortunate to have been involved in SPTC (Sisters Parent-Teacher Community) for... — Updated 9/5/2023 Full story
What's it like to ride with STARS?
There are many reasons people need rides to medical appointments. They may have given up driving altogether, have a temporary condition that makes driving impossible, or they may feel... — Updated 8/29/2023 Full story
A new four-letter word?
Back in the mid-1990s I stopped calling my sandals “thongs.” Because none of us wants to be like that guy to whom “The Princess Bride” character Inigo Montoya said, “You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.... — Updated 8/29/2023 Full story
What is a wolf - a bigger view
If someone were to ask me, “What is a wolf?” I’d pause, as there is no simple answer. They are a dynamically complex species, legendary in fiction and lore; historically persecuted, used when convenient as an image for sport teams, trave... — Updated 8/22/2023 Full story
Jazz jams bring music community together
In the creatively inclined town of Sisters, music can usually be found just around the corner. From hosting musical venues throughout the area, to being the origin of the Sisters Folk Festiva... — Updated 8/22/2023 Full story
Good intentions are not enough
According to ProPublica’s Nonprofit Explorer site, the Sisters Cold Weather Shelter (SCWS) officially became a registered nonprofit in January 2021. This fact is mirrored by Guidestar’s non-profit profile of the same organization. The onl... — Updated 8/22/2023 Full story
The music never stopped
It’s a hand-me-down, the thoughts are broken Perhaps they’re better left unsung I don’t know, don’t really care Let there be songs to fill the air —“Ripple,” Robert Hunter/Jerry... — Updated 8/15/2023 Full story
Moral quandaries in World War II
World War II is often hailed as “The Good War,” fought by “The Greatest Generation.” That characterization is accurate. The massive mobilization to defeat Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy,... — Updated 8/8/2023 Full story
A wolf in sheep's clothing
This proposed “cold weather shelter” at 192 W. Barclay Dr. is a wolf in sheep’s clothing, and will become a magnet for vagrancy to our small town — “build it and they will come; enable it, fund it, and it will grow.” Here in Sisters, we... — Updated 8/8/2023 Full story
A human wrote this column
A human being wrote this column. You’ll just have to take my word for it. Strange way to start a column, right? Well, we’re living in strange times. Times in which this column you’re readi... — Updated 8/1/2023 Full story
The perfect wilderness road trip books
Few books can transport me to another place these days. With the hecticness of life in general, with busy work schedules, deadlines, and a new house to maintain, reading and getting... — Updated 7/25/2023 Full story
Living till you die
Dave Alvin is a hero of mine. He was an early standard-bearer for the hybrid of country, folk, blues, and roots rock & roll that folks call “Americana” music. He played here at the Sis... — Updated 7/25/2023 Full story
