A Shorter Point of View  

by Raven Ash, Cub reporter 

A Look into the Past

I’m Raven Ash with Quincy Buzz with another intriguing story.  My Great-Grandmother Valera showed me a letter written over 50 years ago from my Great-Grandfather Merle.  He was in the military and stationed at Ft. Sill, Oklahoma. 
The pages of the letter were a dark yellow and the text was in cursive, and was faded from age.  The date on the letter read July 15, 1951.  In the letter my Great-Grandpa wrote that he was getting ready to go to church and then was hoping to see a friend in the hospital.  The friend had been in an explosion that had burned him over most of his body.  When he arrived at the hospital he was not allowed in the room to see his friend so he peeked through the door.  Merle’s friend was completely burned.  My Great-Grandpa never told his family if his friend survived the burns or not.  He told my Grandpa Bryan the story that his friend was driving a tank during training when someone put a shell in backwards and when they fired, it went off in the tank.  He continued to tell my Grandpa that he always felt guilty because he was to have been in the tank too, and maybe he could have been injured or maybe corrected the mistake.  We will never know. 
Even though my Great-Grandpa Merle passed away 34 years ago but I feel I have gotten to know him a little and that he was an amazing man.

Picking Corn

A couple of weeks ago I rode in the combine with my Grandpa.  It was so amazing.  I never imagined it would be so entertaining.
I felt so high up off the ground and felt taller than the corn.  The combine moved slowly, corn stalks quickly fell to the ground and the corn was delivered up to the Big Green John Deere Machine. 
It was really dusty, dirty and itchy.  The window was covered in dust.  Just watching the ferocious dust cloud wack the window made me sneeze.
Suddenly the combine came to a hault, “why did you stop I asked, the grain bucket is full, we have to put it in the wagon, he replied.  Then he pulled a lever and switch, then a long tube come out and out poured all the yellow kernals of corn into a really old red wagon.
After that my grandpa decided it was time to head back to the house.  He pulled another large lever and the corn head rose from the ground.  The combine started moving toward the house and my grandpa’s cousin David followed close behind him with the tractor and a full red wagon of corn hooked on the to the back of the tractor. 
That was my adventure helping my Grandpa pick corn.

My Uncles Wedding

 
When I was a baby, my Uncle Kyle lived with us. He would take me to the mall with his friends.  They would fight over who would carry my diaper bag, car seat and even me.  They thought  I was a great way to meet girls.  But I think it was just because they liked being with me.

Kyle then joined the Air Force and I rarely saw him.  After a few years he returned home and attended WIU in Macomb. That is where he met  Jenny Gay. 
I remember being so excited when Kyle would come home to visit, especially when Jenny came along.  I would ask Jenny to play with me, we would draw rainbows and hearts and other girlie stuff and we would then put them all over Kyle’s walls.  Since Kyle and Jenny couldn’t stay long I would make lists of thing for us to do on their next trip.

On October 1, 2011 the most exciting thing happened.  My Uncle Kyle and Aunt Jenny’s wedding.

What a beautiful wedding it was.  It was on the front steps of the Villa Katherine.  Our families and friends were all there to celebrate this wonderful day.  Kyle and Jennie live in St. Louis now and rarely get a chance to come home. I miss them both a lot, and Kyle is still my favorite person in the world.

Quest Stables

Quest Stables is a not-for-profit organization that rescues abused, mistreated and unwanted horses but that is not all they do.  They take these horses and nurse them back to health and then train them so they can be used to change a child’s life. Most Saturdays the Quest staff and volunteers offer therapeutic riding lessons for children that have health issues.  Seeing them ride and the smiles on the kid’s faces and you can tell the horses know they are doing a really good thing to let the kid’s ride.  If you are looking for a great place to volunteer, I suggest you go to Quest Stables so you too can make a difference.  For more information on Quest Stable go to www.queststables.com.  Who knows it might even change your life.

Riding at Quest

Riding horses is my very favorite thing to do.  When riding I feel like I can almost fly with the speed of the horses.  I ride at Quest Stables where I get to make a rescued horse feel loved and wanted.  When I ride at Quest I make a difference by helping with chores.  Some of the chores are feeding the horses, cleaning out their stalls, grooming the horses. I like brushing them and even giving them a bath.  I think if more people would volunteer at Quest then the world might be a happier place and I know the horses would be happy.

Siloam Springs

Last weekend my whole family went to Siloam Springs State Park for a picnic. It was a wonderful day.  It was sunny and warm and everyone was having fun.  Wwe ate fried chicken, coleslaw and potato salad then had some yummy cookies for dessert.  We decided to go on a hike (except for the chickens that were too scared to go).  We went up a very steep hill that brought us to a flat area.  We walked what seemed like forever till my Mom finally got tired and wanted to go back.

After resting awhile we went to the lake.  It was so beautiful.  Down by the side of the lake we noticed some very small metal row boats, and of course wanted to get in them and go for a boat ride.  Grandpa went to the front desk to ask if he could rent a couple of the boats and the man said of course.  We grabbed life jackets, put them on and away we went rowing all over the lake.  When we got tired of rowing we just floated in the middle of the lake.   What a wonderful day at the park. I can’t wait to go back again soon.

First day of school

My first day of school was not an easy one. I had to wake up earlier than I had grown used to during the summer, ride a bus which I was not used to and go to a new school where I disnt know anyone. 

 I woke up to my two cats Spade and Marbles waiting at the back door to be fed and have attention.  After they were satisfied I went back in the house to choose my clothes for the first day. I chose a gray shirt and gray and black plaid skirt.

Then the dreaded time had come. Time to walk all the way up our long lane to catch the bus to school. I waited along with my brother and sister. We waited quite a while but the bus never came. So back down the long lane we went and  Mom drove us to school.

When I finally arrived I walked straight to my locker repeating my  combination over and over in my head. I had to try it several times but it finally opened. I knew no one but by the end of the day I had decided that moving is not such a bad thing.  I like my teachers. Home room is Mr. Walter, and I also have Mrs. Aschemann and Mrs.Walters.

The next thing I knew it was time to ride the bus home to my waiting cats and Mom. I think I am going to like it here!    

Moving can be hard. It is especially difficult if you are shy. It can be very hard if the move includes changing schools. Living in a new house which does not yet feel like home gives you an uncomfortable feeling. I moved over the summer to a small town where I know no one. I know when school starts I will meet new people and make new friends but I am a shy person so the first day of school will be difficult for me. It is so much easier to look forward to returning to the same school and the same familiar faces. I miss my "old" friends as I look forward to making new ones.

Starting school    

Everyone has their own opinion about the start of school. Some students enjoy starting school and are anxious to see the friends they have missed over the summer. Some students would prefer the summer went on forever.  I wish all students enjoyed school and were ready to start again. 

Starting school can make you nervous because you are not sure who you will meet or if you will like your new teacher. Some students worry about the difficulty of the grade they are entering and if others will have better and nicer things than they have.

Another exciting part of starting school is shopping for school supplies. Pencils, notebooks, folders, and more are fun to shop for because you get to choose the colors and designs for all your school items. I am ready to start school!                                                                                                  -Raven Ash

Adams County Fair Wednesday, August 3, 2011

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 Featured in video:Kayden Miller 13 and Cory Miller 12

Kids day at the Adams County Fair

On August 2nd, 2011  the Adams county fair in Mendon IL. held a kids day. On this day carnival rides are half priced which is why I thought it would be the best day ask kids about their fair experiences. When we arrived at the the fair we were surprised to discover the that the grounds were still as if it were abandoned . As we continued to drive in to the  parking spots we notice very little people have joined to take advantage of the sale.  

As we waited and looked for people to interview we discovered why there was such a small crowd. The heat was dreadful. As the sun shined on our black flip flops our feet began burn. We walked and walked and then we had our first person to interview, Macie Waddill who was 9 years old and from Camp Point IL. Macie said her favorite ride was the “Moby Dick”.  

Most of the kids I talked to said that the rides were their favorite. Taylor kill from Clayton is 15 and her favorite part of the fair is to show her 3 cattle Ruby, Dotty ,and Wendy. Taylor said that  she has won many ribbons and trophies and last year won the grand champ. Delaney Mooney is 8 and her favorite part is the Ferris wheel because it goes high. Delaney also enjoys the the bunnies because they are for sale. Even though it was hot , we cooled of with an ice cold lemon shake up.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  - Raven Ash  

Featured in video: Macie Waddill 8, Delaney Mooney 8, Max Mooney 6, Taylor Kill 15

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