We didn’t get clear directions. “Just come down Futch Road,” Fancy Farms owner Carl Grooms told Plant City Times & Observer and In the Field Publisher Karen Berry in a phone call earlier in the week. We are in Berry’s 4Runner. In the Field Editor Sarah Holt is in the passenger seat. I’m in the […]
Continue ReadingMy View
Make positive changes
I went to Europe in the summer of 1992, and one of the places I visited was Berlin. Walking along parts of what used to be the Berlin Wall, I picked up a small piece of it as a keepsake. This concrete barrier that once split that city into east and west zones seemed permanent […]
Continue ReadingFaith Matters: Bells are ringing
School is back in session. Are you ready Plant City? As I write this, I think back to the days when my children began school. As any parent can understand, they are days of mixed emotions. I was glad to see them headed off to school after a long summer, but I also realized I […]
Continue ReadingTake a step back and ground yourself
When what you feel seems overwhelming, a technique called grounding may help you. Grounding involves recognizing details in your immediate surroundings that distract you from heavy emotions. Notice what pictures are on a wall or the kinds of trees growing in an area. Doing this furthers your ability to put some distance between you and […]
Continue ReadingThere’s something brewing at PCHS
The room is packed. Susan Sullivan flits from one end of the classroom to the other, greeting those who walk in. With a positive reputation from Tomlin Middle School, she is taking what she has learned as principal of TMS and amplifying it in her new role as Plant City High School’s principal. Then there’s […]
Continue ReadingHow big are your dreams?
Have you ever began a project with the sunshine of excitement only to be met with the dreary rain of others’ doubt and despairing words? Do the phrases, “You can’t do that” or “Are you out of your mind,” inspire you to roll forward with a new sense of “Watch me!” Or do they make […]
Continue ReadingFaith Matters: Summertime
Summer has finally arrived. We’ve been having those “dog days” and those “lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer,” and it’s only July. Plans are being made or have already been made by many of us for our summer getaway. Many, I’m sure, are looking forward to that long overdue R & R or some escape […]
Continue ReadingLife Lessons from the Field: Limping through Life
As I returned home from an appointment with the orthopedic doctor, I pondered his professional recommendation of a total right hip replacement. I began the process of contacting my primary care doctor, making room on the schedule (I was asking God to stop the sun for two weeks and he said “No!”), and eating less […]
Continue ReadingLearning to Love the Weeds: Bidens Alba
By Donna Bollenbach | Florida Native Plant Society Nothing attracts more butterflies and bees than a simple white flower called bidens alba. Also called romerillo, beggar’s tick, Spanish needle or monkey’s lice, this Florida native wildflower is the third most reliable source of nectar for pollinators in our state. There would be many starving bees and butterflies […]
Continue ReadingReach out to people
When I go to Tampa, I sometimes visit Oxford Exchange. It is a combination coffee and tea shop, gift store, and book seller. A lot of people seem to frequent this inviting and welcoming space. It illustrates the need people have to get out and gather with each other. This social tendency most people have […]
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