A good garden may have some weeds.

                 English historian Thomas Fuller penned a humorous and accurate metaphor about society, but I may choose to utilize the literal connotation.

                Both sets of my grandparents were adept gardeners. Grandma and Grandpa Larson planted row after row of green beans, tomatoes, and sweet corn. And at the east edge of the half-block long plot, lofty sunflowers stood like soldiers, their heads swiveling along the sun’s path until it disappeared beneath the horizon. The garden looked perfectly manicured, offering straight rows with strategically placed plants.

                The garden at Grandma and Grandpa Fields’ farm contained the staples: cucumbers, squash, green beans, peppers, and tomatoes. They were adventurous gardeners, not afraid to plant some not-so-popular veggies, like parsnips and turnips. This was no weed-free zone. A few stragglers may have sprouted, trying to overtake a strip of acorn squash or a hill of radishes. But, as gardens go, it always produced a plentiful bounty.

                One of my earliest memories involves the small garden my parents planted behind our house in Clay Center. At age two, I wanted to help my dad, so while he cut the grass, I pulled every green bean plant from the ground.

                Oops! I guess I may have been the weed in my parents’ backyard plot.

                Seriously though, gardening creates such a strong connection, not only with the land, but among people. And here in Nebraska, gardening seems to be yet another common thread that laces so many of our lives together.

                As the push for sustainable products grow in popularity, gardening (and agricultural) practices across the state are experiencing a metamorphosis. People are seeking food sources that support healthy people and communities. Consumers expect producers to employ beneficial land practices.

                And if you want to take the concept to a higher level, it’s about more than gardening. Sustainable agriculture offers a way to chart food from farm to table.

                It’s creating a new enthusiasm about gardening practices. From Omaha to Scottsbluff, community gardens bring people together to work toward a common goal. Sharing the wealth – in vegetables – is just the ranch dip on the carrot stick.

                If life is a garden and we should just dig it, we shouldn’t have to dig too deep to find the more important lesson.

                My kids planted a garden for 4-H. Did they earn a grand champion ribbon? No. But that wasn’t the lesson I wanted them to learn.

               Was the garden weed-free? Heck, no. Did the girls attempt to rid the plot of pesky plants? Sometimes. Did they keep it watered? Sure, and during the blistering days of summer, they’d play in the mud. Sometimes, all you could see was the white of their eyes. (I should’ve invested in a laundry detergent company!)

                They learned responsibility, discovered the art of seeing something through from inception until the last withered vine stopped producing.

                And they learned that a weed-free garden may be impractical – even impossible; but a varied garden cultivated with love brings the best yields.   

Take me out to the ball game, Take me out with the crowd. Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack. I don’t care if I ever get back…

Nebraska’s fascination with the boys of summer most likely began after Alexander Cartwright’s modernized game gained favor and swept the frontier in the mid-1800s. Omaha’s first organized club assembled in 1867.

In 1869, the Cincinnati Red Stockings stopped in Omaha, pounding the locals, 65 – 1. The Omaha catcher vanished during the 7th inning stretch. His teammates couldn’t find a replacement.

A decade later, the Northwestern League came together, including Davenport, Rockford, Omaha and Dubuque. This lineup formed the first minor league not located on the East Coast.

Around the turn of the century, baseball promoter Guy Green coordinated the formation of the Nebraska Indians baseball team, scouting players from the schools at both Genoa and Santee, as well as the Omaha and Winnebago reservations.

The team fireballed its way across the Cornhusker state, playing local town teams and creating a Wild West ambiance for zealous crowds. This team overcame its initial flash-in-the-pan persona, becoming a top exhibition team.

Nebraska has fielded its share of Hall of Famers, too. Add these names to the scorecard:  Grover Cleveland Alexander, who was born in Elba; Tilden’s favorite son, Richie Ashburn; Omaha native Wade Boggs; “Wahoo Sam” Crawford from – you guessed it – Wahoo;  Bob Gibson, Omaha native;  manager Billy Southworth was born in Harvard; and Arthur “Dazzy” Vance grew up in Hastings.

Currently, Nebraska natives Alex Gordon and Joba Chamberlain make headlines for KC and NY Yankees, respectively.

My dad and I share an appreciation for the game. When I was a kid, we’d travel to Hastings and watch the local American Legion team. Nothing better on a summer evening than watching baseball, eating a cherry Sno-cone and battling a few mosquitoes. (My husband would disagree. He doesn’t understand the allure of the game.)

But the stories about baseball that intrigue me come from my dad when he was a kid. He talks about the town teams from Wausa and Crofton, games against farm team players, some-day major leaguers, where the love of the game reverberated as loudly as the crack of the wooden bat.

These were the games that brought communities together. These were the games that provided entertainment and seemed to connect everyone. Something bigger was at stake during these simpler times, and baseball was the vehicle that united them all.

I remember Wausa’s ballpark on summer Sunday evenings, or sometimes during the week (Wednesdays, maybe?), watching the locals swing and sometimes miss or send a grand slam over the outfield fence.

Even a generation later, a baseball game was a social event, where neighbors and friends congregated to cheer on the neighbors and friends on the field.

When the last batter was called out, we walked back to my grandparents’ house, the glow of field lights filtering above cottonwood trees, slowly fading into darkness.

Baseball is a tradition that’s as American – and Nebraskan – as hot dogs and apple pie.

Superman and Batman battled hardened criminals. “Keen Detective Mysteries” illustrated gripping thrillers. And “The Funny Pages” provoked fits of laughter.

These comic books, now considered part of the Golden Age era, entertained readers during the 1930s and 1940s. By the time my dad turned nine, he liked reading the daily and Sunday newspaper comics. My grandparents believed investing a dime in a comic book was worthwhile.

Dad didn’t want to miss an issue of new comics delivered to Creutz Drug Store in Wausa. Owner Fred Creutz mentioned the store would reserve the comics by writing dad’s name on the new books.  Employees Tryg Hagen and Cecil Coop were responsible for inscribing dad’s name on the covers in the upper left hand corner.

As years passed, dad’s interests in reading material changed, so Grandma Larson packed away the 1,000+ comics. When the family moved across town in 1940, boxes of comics were stored in the barn.

For 35 years, the comics remained hidden in the darkness.

After grandpa passed away in 1973, grandma hired a local handyman to clean out the barn. The worker found the comics , along with old magazines. He asked grandma about them and she sold the boxes for a measly sum. About two years later, he sold the comics for between $50 and $100 dollars at a Sioux City flea market to Joe Triarichi, a comics dealer from Cleveland.

For the next 20 years, Triarichi sold the books that are now known as “the Larson comics,” the third largest comic collection that form one of the most collectible and recognizable pedigree sets in the world.

Through the years, a Connecticut collector named Jon Berk purchased several Larson comics. Berk tried to locate dad, but couldn’t find him.

Then, comic book karma intervened.

In 1993, a fellow collector approached Berk with “All Star Comics I,” claiming it was a Larson. But the book didn’t have the telltale “Lamont” or “Larson” written on it. Luckily, dad had filled out a coupon for a contest but didn’t cut it out. Address: Wausa, Nebraska.

Berk called information, eventually reaching a non-relative, who directed Berk to my 96-year-young grandma, who directed him to dad.

In June 1993, dad received a phone call from Berk proclaiming, “I finally found Lamont Larson.”

Dad’s reply: “I didn’t realize I was lost.”

Dad doesn’t view himself as a collector. His love of reading action/adventure kept him entertained and expanded his love of reading.

In 2005, mom and dad, sister Laurie, daughter Courtney and I attended San Diego ComiCon and met a wonderful group of comic enthusiasts and collectors who are passionate about this collection and its impact on the comic book world.

The following day, a gentleman we’d met at the convention stopped us in the hotel lobby and introduced his daughters, screaming, “This….is Lamont Larson.”

Surreal.

It reminded me of groupies converging on a celebrity, waiting to catch a glimpse, snap a blurred photo, or snag a coveted autograph.

To me, he’s dad.

But in the world of comic books, he’s a rock star.

Time for a pop quiz. I know, school’s out for summer, but let’s test your knowledge about something red, something blue, and something with stars and stripes, too.

#1: When is Flag Day?

#2: When did the United States first have a standardized flag?

#3: What are the flag’s two nicknames?

#4: How many pieces of fabric are required to make the American flag?

#5: What do the 13 red and white stripes represent?

#6: What was the first American Flag called?

#7: Which American leader did Betsy Ross teach to make a 5-pointed star?

#8: Who contributed to the design of the first flag?

#9: The first ceremony honoring the Stars and Stripes was held June 14, 1877. What did the celebration honor?

#10: Which states passed a law in 1890 requiring schools to fly the flag daily?

#11: Which city held the first official Flag Day observance?

Are you ready to wave the white flag and surrender? Sometimes, we forget the basic elements of our national history, and a refresher course never hurts! (Answers, in order: June 14, 1912, Stars and Stripes and Old Glory, 64, original 13 colonies, Grand Union, George Washington, Betsy Ross, the centennial of the adoption of the US flag, North Dakota and New Jersey, and Philadelphia.)

Since 9/11, when our country’s patriotism reached fever pitch, American flags fly proudly over schools, government agencies, and all sorts of buildings. Old Glory waves from thousands of homes, a symbol of freedom and liberties our forefathers strived for and our military continues to fight for. And since that day when our peace was disrupted, many Americans consider every day to be a Flag Day.

What is the real reason for the celebration? Credit a Wisconsin school teacher. In 1885, BJ Cigrand developed the idea of celebrating the flag’s birthday on June 14, the anniversary of its official adoption. By the mid 1890s, flags were plentiful and cities hosted festive celebrations honoring the Grand Old Flag.

What does it mean to our country and even to Nebraska residents?

I don’t remember attending any grand parades for the red, white and blue. June 14 would come and go like any other sticky summer day, except my mother would hang the flag from our front porch. Most of our neighbors did, too.

I do remember one Flag Day spent with my grandparents in Wausa. In front of each business, an American flag stood tall and proud. Next to the auditorium, a circular display swayed, creating a sea of patriotic ripples.

Grandma reminded me that my grandfather’s actions during WWI made it possible for our family to enjoy the simple things in life. She stressed loyalty to every thread comprising that flag and explained why that banner deserves daily respect and remembrance.

When you’re 10, you listen, but those wise words may never take root until you’ve experienced life, seen the attempted destruction of our nation’s values.

Now, when you look at that flag, it’s a visual reminder of sacrifice and anticipation of faithful trust in this nation.

About 30 years ago, when we were cleaning my grandmother’s house in Wausa, Nebraska, when she moved to a nursing facility, I stumbled upon a quilt. The top was this beautiful orange, cream, and brown flower pattern. The back was a spring green. I have no clue who made it or what the significance was, but I took it home and used it for the next 15 years until it literally disintegrated.

Quilts and the art of quilting have been a tradition since, well, for thousands of years. Quilting is believed to have started in Egypt. In America, quilting dates to the 1700s.

How does quilting tie to Nebraska? In Lincoln, you’ll find the International Quilt Study Center and Museum, where you’ll discover the largest collection of quilts in the world.  Over 3500 quilts are housed in the state-of-the-art building.

The center is part of the University of Nebraska system, located on the East Campus at 33rd and Holdrege Streets. In 1997, Ardis and Robert James donated their collection of over 1000 quilts to UN-L. After a donation from the James family and other private funding came about, the new building opened in 2008. Now, over 30 different countries are represented in the collection.

The study center and museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 1o AM to 4:30 PM and Sundays, 1 – 4:30 PM. Admission is charged.

The quilt study center and museum is a fabulous artistic and historic resource that highlights and retells an American story through fabric.