Julie’s Journal

Bowden Postscript

Bowden Postscript

It was the year 2000 and a book publisher had contacted me about writing a collection of quotes from Florida State University’s Head Coach Bobby Bowden. I agreed on one condition: that I could get the coach’s permission.

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All Hands On Dirt

All Hands On Dirt

There’s something enchanting about the way Michelle Burke introduces herself on social media. The descriptors tug on something deep inside of you, twisting what you view as something old back into something new, beckoning you to remember a past time, awakening your grass roots spirit and calling it to create again. . . . Spoiler alert: a visit to @burke_meadows on Instagram will make you want to plunge your hands in the dirt or bake something oozing with buttery sweetness.

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The Conversation

The Conversation

My friend was sitting with his head bowed toward his lap. He could have been reading or praying. I touched his shoulder gently and his eyes lit up in greeting. I knelt down beside him, lowered my mask, and looked into his dark face.

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2020 Report: Land Ownership Prevails (Again)

2020 Report: Land Ownership Prevails (Again)

It would be impossible to talk about land values in 2019 without talking about Hurricane Michael; and it’s just as impossible to talk about projections for this year without talking about COVID-19.

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Building More Beef Believers with Grass Fed

Building More Beef Believers with Grass Fed

Four men are gathered in the middle of a cow pasture near Whigham, Georgia. It’s midmorning on a Tuesday in early June and Tom, a rescue dog, is nearby. He’s panting heavily, his broad pink tongue a built-in climate control.

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My Mother’s Letters

My Mother’s Letters

I usually found them sitting on the edge of the dresser positioned perfectly, so as not to be lost as I breezed through my bedroom in a hurry to be someplace else. My name, just the first, would be written on a bulging envelope in the unmistakable hand of Mother.

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