All Roads Lead Home by Kim McCully-Mobley

Send us Fan Mail Life. It comes in steps, minutes, moments and seasons. I can walk to my room in 130 steps each morning from the back door of the high school. I can get home from Wal-Mart in eight minutes, I cherish each moment I get to spend with friends, trusted colleagues, special students and my family. The seasons of life are special. I like this one. I am about as professionally developed as...

Send us Fan Mail My good friend and favorite redhead, Shannon Walker, gave me a gift this past weekend I didn't know I needed. She gave me the opportunity to share a few stories in the wake of the tragic loss of her daughter, Megan Walker Briscoe, who was essentially Aurora's daughter. She gave me the gift of editing someone I used to write and work with a couple of decades ago. And the...

Send us Fan Mail I tried to record this seven times. I had a hard time getting through it. I hope you listen to the message and not my mistakes. This, for now, is the best I can do. Saying goodbye to the daughter of some good friends is not what I wanted to write about this week for the podcast. But it's necessary. And, it's not really goodbye. It's---I'll see you later. Yet--t...

Send us Fan Mail Jack Muench was named our Community Service Award recipient for Aurora this past Saturday night by the Aurora Chamber of Commerce. I bit back a few tears while Shannon Walker read the script. Jack is a hometown guy with a heart of gold. I have been looking up to him for decades. They just don't make 'em any better.  As president of First Independent Bank in Aurora, he we...

Send us Fan Mail Five years ago I participated in The Great Escape. I was escaping from my home away from home at Cox South in Springfield--where I had been given a second chance at life, love, happiness and success. I don't want to keep whining about Covid and my Long Covid journey. I'm not a whiner. I'm not a quitter. And, I usually try hard to find a loaves and fishes way to get...

Send us Fan Mail This week marks a milestone. It's been five years since I came off a ventilator. I remember the feeling like it was yesterday. A wild range of emotions from panic to joy to sadness to peace. I was having a hard time sleeping later that day and a nurse had whispered in my ear: "I see you playing possum. You're not very good at it. You need to rest." "I&apos...

Send us Fan Mail My nieces and nephews have always been part mine. So this week's podcast is about one of them. They probably don't always like it, but I love them soooooo much, I just can't help myself as I cross the line of ownership time and time again. I always figured an extra mother can't hurt, right? Chad Estes is a local character all his own. He is, indeed, a chip off...

Send us Fan Mail I like the idea of making New Year's resolutions. Over 30 percent of America's population of 340 plus million people make them. It takes. Over 60 percent of those folks will not be following through on their commitments in six months. My resolutions are focusing on healthier habits, more self-care, additional time planned for adventures with family and friends and cultiv...

Send us Fan Mail I love Christmas. I enjoy traditions. I like making new friends and celebrating old ones. Our family has encountered great grief at Christmas a couple of times. But yet, grief is the evidence of great love. So, we will continue to celebrate lives lost and those no longer at the table. One Christmas in the 1980s, I lost my job on Christmas Eve Eve...and then my car burned up on the...

Send us Fan Mail The three keys to success according to Fred Rogers of Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood fame? Be Kind. Be Kind. Be Kind. Some days this old world seems a little harsh and crazy. To battle that trend, let's start a kindness revival.  Pause. Take a breath. Move forward with grace, kindness and love. You won't regret it. I promise.

Send us Fan Mail Community. Christmas. Celebrations. Camaraderie. All of those things combined for me to make a big promise to a colleague last week. He seems to think I am up for new experiences and big adventures. So, after some consideration, I have decided to celebrate a milestone birthday with him by skydiving. Here's hoping he knows CPR and plans to bring me a change of clothes on the o...

Send us Fan Mail I love the Ozarks and my own backyard; but I also love traveling in the company of those I love. I was able to do just that earlier this month on a three-day jaunt to Vegas. A little out of my element, I managed to have a blast. What follows is my reflection on the journey, the fun, the laughter and the concept of home and Toby Keith's song "I'm Not As Good As I Onc...

Send us Fan Mail Veterans Day falls during the month of November as we are gearing up for Thanksgiving and other holiday celebrations. We hosted a Veterans Assembly earlier this month at Aurora High School. It was an honor to help the other organizations pay tribute to our local veterans in style. Michele Mowris was our keynote speaker. She talked about the loss of her husband, Sgt. Doug Mowris, i...

Send us Fan Mail It is always better to give than to receive. A favorite belief of mine that comes from Sunday School teachings is that whatever you give away will come back to you tenfold. That said, please feel free to jump on the bandwagon for the third round of Hometown Partners Giving Circle efforts this year. The money is earmarked for good things in Aurora, Marionville and Verona. Plus, wha...

Send us Fan Mail I get asked all the time about the state of today's teenagers? Are they different? Do they have good manners? Is there some kind of a disconnect? Well, let me just tell you about a couple of them from Aurora High School. Jaysa Ernest and Addi Hall represented Aurora at the Annual RYLA Camp a couple of weeks ago. After hearing them speak last week at a Rotary Club meeting, I c...

Send us Fan Mail This week paved the way for some time in the archives, some old-fashioned research, a couple of fall outings and a handful of stories. Join me as I share a few fun ones as we work our way towards a few more holiday stories and projects to wind out the year.

Send us Fan Mail Friday, October 17th, would have been Evan Boettler's 18th birthday. This year should have been his senior year. We should be talking about a senior trip, graduation plans and college. I should be teasing him about calling my friend "Chainsaw Patty" or making him listen to one of my ghost stories as we get closer to Halloween. His life was tragically stolen from us...

Send us Fan Mail We are blessed to have a gentleman living in our community by the name of Darrell Hastings. He received state honors earlier this month for Good Neighbor Week. To add to his honors, Shannon Walker of the Aurora Chamber of Commerce and I made a trek to his home to give him a cap and ask him a special question. He said yes to being one of our Grand Marshals for the upcoming Christma...

Send us Fan Mail How can you be a good neighbor? Wave. Smile. Bake a pan of cookies. Invite people over for a cookout. Pickup some trash. Mow someone's yard. Help them with a project. Hold a door open. Go visit someone to see what they need.  Be a good neighbor as we celebrate our community this week. We have a lot to offer. Plus, we have the best neighbors in the state.

Send us Fan Mail I attended a leadership retreat a few weeks ago with some new colleagues. I have been on fire about it ever since. I have used it for writing prompts, columns and lesson plans. I have used it to revamp and recharge my to do list and the circle of folks I want to work with most in these so-called Golden Years. Take a listen. See what you think.  What do others need to know about yo...

Send us Fan Mail Scott Pettit read the script Friday night as the undefeated Aurora 1965 Football Team made a special appearance at Kelley Field. If you were there, watching online or even listening--you were part of history. This is the stuff dreams are made of and these dreams have lasted more than six decades as this scrappy team made headlines for their skills, speed, prowess and tenacity. The...

Send us Fan Mail Last weekend found me on a quick trip to the lake with my family. We were visiting with friends from Alabama and enjoying some much-needed down time.  We ate, we played, we laughed, we slept. We watched the Houn' Dawgs and the Chiefs from our lakeside cabin, Wranglers' Rest. I loved every minute; it just went by too quickly--as always. Saturday found us at the Keeter Cen...

Send us Fan Mail Exploring the backroads and byways of the Ozarks has been a passion of mine for decades. Roads connect people. They have a personality all of their own. Labor Day Weekend found me rediscovering some places, people and things in northwest Arkansas. Highway 62 is a historic road with lots of stories, history and fun. If you get a chance, go do a little exploring of your own. You&apo...

Send us Fan Mail These boots were made for walkin'---- I sang that song on the way home from school one day after my first taste of kindergarten. I had enjoyed the opening round of school--for the most part. I did not enjoy the Back To School spanking I had received earlier in the day from my pretty teacher--Mrs. Bolin, though. Trust me when I say I never saw it coming. I was hoping that litt...

Send us Fan Mail A celebration of life will be held this week for Shari Carmichael of Aurora. Shari was a prayer warrior, a champion for underdogs and a powerful role model for women of faith. Her final moments were full of love, grace and mercy. She was worried about others and firm in her beliefs about Heaven and God's grace. We will honor her by gathering funds for a playground at her chur...