Opinion

“I say that half your life is spent trying to get out of a small town and the other half trying to get back to one.” — Kelly Cutrone, American publicist, television personality, and author. The preacher’s sermon on Sunday centered on a prevalent problem in America today.

New Year’s is one of my favorite times of the year. It’s an opportunity to reflect on all that we accomplished in the past 12 months while looking ahead with hope, optimism, and expectation for what we will create together in the year ahead. The new year is always full of so much promise.

“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams. — Eleanor Roosevelt Looking back is part of the fun of writing a weekly column for decades.

As we bid farewell to 2023, we take a moment to reflect on the journey we’ve shared together as a community. This year has been a testament to the strength, resilience, and unity that defi ne the City of Alpine. As we express our gratitude, remember the highs and lows, honor those we’ve lost, and anticipate the possibilities ahead, we want to extend our heartfelt thanks to each and every member of our community.

“A sister is someone who knows everything about you and loves you anyway.” — Author unknown It was just a few days ago. November 14.

As the sun sets on another year at Sul Ross State University, I am filled with pride and gratitude for the incredible achievements and transformative experiences that have characterized our campus community. Reflecting on the past year, and indeed the last 18 months since I arrived, I find myself compelled to celebrate the remarkable milestones that have defined our journey at SRSU.

When managing rangeland for grazing purposes, it is essential that owners and managers understand the resources that are available to them to assist in this sometimes difficult and complex process. There is a wide array of innovative tools and resources at the disposal of individuals who find themselves making these critical management decisions. One of the many, highly effective services that producers can utilize through AgriLife is the Grazing Land Animal Nutrition Lab, commonly referred to as the GAN Lab. The GAN Lab dates back to the 1980s with its roots in the Conservation Biology and Range, Wildlife, & Fisheries Management Departments at Texas A&M University. The original goals of the lab were to study grazing and nutrition trends in livestock. An innovative approach was utilized that allowed actual measurement of nutrient intake and diet composition of animals through fecal samples, instead of the more commonly used widespread forage testing in pastures and rangelands. The results often portrayed a vastly different picture when compared with the actual grazing diets of the animals using these pastures.

“Your big-time writer is a person with incredibly poignant things to say about life and the profundity of the human condition … a columnist’s highest aspiration is for someone to cut his or her column out of the paper and hang it on the refrigerator.”

Radicalized Islam calls Christians and Jews “the people of the book,” the Bible. This Christian supports and loves my brothers and sisters in Abraham, the Jew. According to the Holy Scripture, Christians have been ‘grafted’ into the vine. Christians and Jews are family. Bible prophecy warns us of unbelievably severe persecution on our horizon. No strangers to programs and slaughter, Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel is only the beginning of the most recent satanic attack on the Jews. But this attack is not confined to the Middle East. It is here within our borders. What is going on? What is this world coming to, I hear people ask. No one seems to have answers. But I believe the Bible has the answer. All of the answers. What is going on is not natural. Rather it is supernatural. It is Satan’s supernatural hatred for God and God’s people: Jews and Christians. An answer to the dilemma: draw near to Jesus Christ and He will draw near to you. I like to tell people, “The safest place to be in hard times is to reside in the perfect will of God.” Look up. The Lord is near, Alpine. Steve Stainkamp Alpine

Attitude concerns I’m not sure what position or action California Governor Gavin Newsom has taken regarding China and President Xi Jinping, and after reading Mr. Le Blanc’s letter of November 29, I still don’t.