Prescribed Burn

Some of us may wonder, “Why are prescribed burns done on our forests?” Questions like this loom, especially after the Lower North Fork Wildfirewhich erupted from a prescribed burn. The purpose is to prevent destructive wildfires

which can be done by burning under safer conditions with the necessary tools for control. An appropriately “controlled” burn would reduce fuels that feed dangerous fires and assure that the next fire season would not bring destructive, property damaging fire. Prescribed burning is a very precise practice and a complex tool. Fire is applied in a knowledgeable manner to forest fuels on a specific land area under selected weather conditions to accomplish predetermined, well-defined management objectives. Only a certified fire prescriptionist should be allowed to burn. Proper diagnosis and detailed planning is mandatory before every burn. An incomplete assessment of any factor in a plan can lead to serious loss of property and life with serious liability questions to both the landowner and the one responsible for the burn. Here at The Big Chili, we’re not casting judgment on anyone for the prescribed burn done in March. We don’t yet know every detail – it’s possible the wind simply didn’t behave as predicted. Yet even in the wake of such a terrible turn of events it’s important to remember that prescribed burns are necessary. They actually serve to make us safer

as well as keeping the forest healthy.

Protect Yourself

Losing a home in a fire is absolutely heartbreaking, but when one finds oneself in a position where he/she cannot rebuild, the heartbreak is compounded. With a fierce fire season predicted, it is extremely important to make sure your insurance coverage is sufficient. If you own a home or other property in the area, take the time today to call your insurance agent and review your coverage. It is worth checking into.

Acquaintances of mine were caught in the Lower North Fork Wildfire. They had fifteen minutes to evacuate and lost their home and everything they own. It is only now that they have discovered that their insurance protection is insufficient. They are faced with an extremely difficult choice: they can use the insurance money to pay off their mortgage, holding onto the land, but having nothing left to rebuild. Or they can consider trying to rebuild, but this means taking on additional debt. Or, the worst case scenario – they will lose their land and have to start somewhere else. There is no “good” choice – anything they do will magnify their tragedy.

Make sure you never find yourself in this situation. Take a few moments to connect with your insurance agent. It will be well worth it.

State Farm Insurance Company

State Farm is the world’s largest mutual property and casualty insurance company, according to Fortune Magazine‘s ‘Fortune Global 500.’  In the magazine’s ‘Fortune 500’ listing, which tracks U.S. firms according to revenue, State Farm is ranked 34th. What does it take for a company to achieve this kind of success? Service. Dependability. Things we’ve come to expect in our mountain community.

When you purchase a policy from State Farm®, you’re guaranteed more than fast, efficient service. With every policy comes the promise that they will be there when you need them. That is why their ads say, “Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there.®” It’s a philosophy they embrace and try to live by every day. For them, Good Neighbor service means being there when and where they’re needed to do what they’ve promised.

The Big Chili Cook-Off would like to thank State Farm® and our mountain agents, Michelle Boley, Brian Himmelman, Chuck Ridings, and Michele Vanags, for supporting our mountain area volunteer fire departments. We couldn’t do what we do without “good neighbors.”

Everyone Goes Home

The Quiet Voice

The Poetry of Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Sonnets from the Portuguese No. 14 by Elizabeth Barrett Browning

 

If thou must love me, let it be for nought
Except for love’s sake only. Do not say
‘I love her for her smile—her look—her way
Of speaking gently,—for a trick of thought
That falls in well with mine, and certes brought
A sense of pleasant ease on such a day’—
For these things in themselves, Belovèd, may
Be changed, or change for thee,—and love, so wrought,
May be unwrought so. Neither love me for
Thine own dear pity’s wiping my cheeks dry,—
A creature might forget to weep, who bore
Thy comfort long, and lose thy love thereby!
But love me for love’s sake, that evermore
Thou mayst love on, through love’s eternity.

Celebrating Our Heritage

© Eric Lars Bakke

The Poetry of Robert Frost

Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening by Robert Frost 1923

Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound’s the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

Famous Women ~ Jane Addams

Jane Addams, born on September 6, 1860, dreamed of becoming a doctor but was frequently ill and unable to pursue her dream. In 1877, she attended Rockville Female Seminary, graduating in 1881. When Jane traveled to London in 1887 with a group of friends, she discovered another passion, which became the cornerstone of her life. She was stunned by the level of poverty she saw in London, but was inspired when she saw Toynbee Hall, a settlement house where workmen could learn a trade.

When she returned home, she went to Chicago determined to copy what she had seen. There, she turned an empty mansion into Hull House, a settlement house where children were cared for and medical care was offered. From Hull House, Jane also worked on cleaning up the disease causing waste that filled the city streets. She worked tirelessly with the poor, and became a well-known speaker at colleges, women’s groups and churches.

By 1898, Jane was know well beyond Chicago for her speeches. In 1915, she became president of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, an outlet for her opposition to World War I. She continued her work, writing and speaking, and in 1931 was awarded the Nobel Prize for her social reform efforts as well as her help with worldwide disarmament after the war.

Her dream was to make every child happy. In its heyday, Hull House served 9,000 people per week. But after 120 years, Hull House closed its doors on Friday, which you can read about here. It’s probably impossible to know how many people Jane Addams touched with her life. She was an inspirational American woman.

The Right Thing