Long before Missouri conservation agents would confirm their presence, some of us who hunted the remote woods of Dallas County were certain the hills and hollers along the Niangua River harbored black bears. more

Remember the ABBA song from 1977 “Take a Chance on Me”? more

It is commendable that we remember our own mothers with cards and other tokens of love this Mother’s Day, but it is even more fitting that we thank God and pray for mothers everywhere. more

The year was 1968. I was riding down the road with my parents. Dad was tokin’ on a Marlboro Red, and Mom was dragging on a Benson & Hedges cigarette. I was running and climbing all over the car, even hiding out where the spare tire rides. It was a 1960 Ford station wagon — a big old gunship. I know you’re saying, “Running around without a seat belt on, and the parents were smoking with the kids in the car.” It wasn’t politically correct, but it was 1968 when people were free. I don’t think the car had seat belts, and we did not have those odd bicycle helmets. How did we ever survive without all the safety features of today?   more

We are less than two weeks away from legislators throwing stacks of paper in the air to celebrate the end of the 2023 session of the Missouri General Assembly, and like every year, there are still a lot of bills in the air. Missouri Farm Bureau is focused on a few key issues as we approach the finish line.  more

Did you know that they have safety glasses for yard work? more

Cool mornings and hot afternoons, like we have been experiencing lately, remind me of camping and fishing trips to the river and stays on the lake in my younger days. I rarely, if ever, get around to camping and fishing trips anymore during the season. But when I was a kid, that was how my dad wanted to spend his time after a long, hard week of work at the sawmill or timber. more

To the Editor: more

School’s almost out, and industrious teenagers are looking for summer work. more

Just recently, I stumbled across a tidbit of interesting information while researching for a future novel. Of course I’m always coming across interesting facts that I was not previously aware of, but this one had to do with Dallas County. more

I’m betting that if we had the philosophy that everything will work itself out, we, as a culture, would be more relaxed and find contentment. But, instead, do we spend our lives and focus on learning how to facilitate and control every aspect of our life? Do we worry too much? more

I last talked to Angela 32 years ago. It was the evening of April 20, 1991. She called to let us know she would be coming home the next day from Central Missouri State University in Warrensburg. more

Tax Freedom Day this year is April 18. The day marks when the nation has earned enough money to pay its total tax bill for the year. Tax Freedom Day takes all federal, state and local taxes and divides them by the nation’s income. more

Spring and Easter are times of renewal. We think of baby bunnies and chicks, smells of fresh-cut grass and floral scents from blooming flowers. We celebrate the risen Christ with special church services, dinners with family and egg hunts for the children. However, this time of year has brought me a heavy heart over the past eight years. more

“The only thing we have to Fear is Fear Itself.” — President Franklin Roosevelt, March 4, 1933. more

Moveable electric fencing has become an important grazing management tool for cattle producers over the past half-century, or so. more

“Because that’s how it’s always been done” is a terrible phrase. Everything about it goes against the grain of improving upon the work for which we are responsible. Innovation is stifled and progress is delayed because of such expressions. If farmers lived that way, they would still be putting seeds into the ground by hand one by one. If farmers never adapted to changing practices and technology, the world would not have the abundance of food, fiber and fuel it enjoys today.  more

I grew up in Dallas County; however, I now live in California and have for many years. I would like to express how much I enjoy reading the Buffalo Reflex each week. My husband, a California native, enjoys the editorials and all the other articles, also. more

I graduated in 1979. I lived through the ’70s during my school days. Today, many everyday 1970s objects are considered out of fashion or extinct. So let’s look at consumerism from the eyes of that kid who wanted to grow up, have a wood-paneled living room, and eat as many Lifesaver Cremesavers as she could manage. more

Isn’t it scary that our political leaders can pick which incidents they choose and make criminal offenses of them. I guess it depends on who is involved, but it is definitely used as a political ploy. more

A couple of weeks ago, my wife, Carol Ann, and I made a trip to northeast Missouri for her to check up on one of her public administrator’s wards and visit with the MAC (Missouri Association of Counties) immediate past president, who is the county clerk for Scotland County. We experienced something along the way that got me to thinking and comparing a portion of the drive to the facets of life. more

Before this latest freeze, I thought I felt a touch of spring in the air. more

As the legendary college football coach Lou Holtz once said, “How you respond to the challenge in the second half will determine what you become after the game, whether you are a winner or a loser.” Last week was the annual legislative spring break, marking the symbolic halfway point in the 2023 spring legislative session. Looking at the first half, we saw progress on a number of Missouri Farm Bureau priority issues.   more

Though I’ve yet to settle on what I want to be when I grow up, I’ve never wanted to be anyone other than me. more

Monday morning, the 20th, I looked and my front yard was full of robins — dozens of them. I had always heard that seeing the first robin was a sure sign of spring. Here is what one Internet site said, “Some people believe that the robin is a promise of new beginning and renewal, just like how plants begin to grow and bloom in springtime. Seeing a robin may encourage the observer to make positive changes in their life, let go of any grudges and follow their dreams.” Whatever the belief, it was absolutely amazing to see that many robins. more