Last Word | May 31st, 2020
by Marie Hoff
We greet each other very carefully,
Like porcupines getting ready to make love.
Arms in big virtual, barrel hugs,
Lots of embarrassed joking and choking
Hoping we don’t look as foolish as we feel.
Hope rises and falls, and rises again
Like the panting of a small injured bird,
testing Ms. Dickinson’s thesis, that it
Never stops singing, no matter what.
Funny things happen: suddenly millions of people
Need millions of rolls of toilet paper: is this an
epidemic of diarrhea or what. . .?
Ugly things happen: an old angry man
Coughs in the faces of store clerks
And declares it a joke.
Over-liberty-drunk Americans proclaim
Their god-given right not to care
About their neighbors, punctuating their rhetoric
With their only working adjective::
Bullshit.
Then some go mad on religion and defiantly need to
congregate in large crowds as never before:
Boom, Boom, Boom-m-de-Boom, Boom– the savages are
dancing, let’s purge the devils out. Some for sure are
holier- than –thou.
Like J. Alfred Prufrock we cry “ashes, ashes”, as we
watch body-bags carried out from NYC hospitals, too
many even to burn or bury: the horror the horror of it
all. Let us indeed weep for our sins.
The jar of orange marmalade spews lies from its
mouth, while toadies fear to speak. CNN sizzles with
frantic sputtering to refute, and the band plays on
while the iceburg rises inexorably. The truth will set
you free says Jesus, but Pilate says “what is truth”.
In the land of the blind, there are no one-eyed men!
Finally, movie stars, sports heroes, and fat politicians
fall silent and inept; while real heroes (–-love that Dr.
Fauchi)--rise to confront the tiny enemy -- the only
weapons that work: science and love, real love that is
willing to die so that others may live. Amen, Amen,
Amen . Yes, Truth and Love will set us free.
[MDH, 4-14-2020]
June 19th 2025
June 19th 2025
April 27th 2025
April 17th 2025
February 28th 2025
By Alicia Underlee Nelsonalicia@hpr1.comNorth Dakota communities will join a “nationwide day of defiance” against authoritarianism and President Donald Trump’s policies on Saturday, June 14. A range of "No Kings" events…
Back-to-school season is on the horizon, but there's still plenty of summer left. Check out our favorite August attractions and events in North Dakota and western Minnesota. And if if you missed them, here are a few excellent May…
June 21, 11 a.m. - 11 p.m.Fargo Theatre, 314 Broadway N., Fargo“We Watch Shudder,” Fargo’s favorite horror podcasters, bring on the darkness during the longest day of the year. The Darkest Day of Horror Film Festival features…
Fighting the good fightBy Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.com Over two thousand rallies took place nationwide June 14 as part of the “No Kings" protest. Ten of those protests were held in North Dakota, with thousands in attendance.…
By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comWe need Paul Revere on a Harley: “ants and autocrats are coming!”The Asian needle ant has been nesting in the American South since at least 1932. It probably hitched a ride on a freighter from…
By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com Holiday wine shopping shouldn’t have to be complicated. But unfortunately it can cause unneeded anxiety due to an overabundance of choices. Don’t fret my friends, we once again have you covered…
By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com The weather warmed up quickly here in the upper Midwest this spring, sparking prime eating season. This means burger battles, food trucks and lake-season food travel. The 2025 Downtown Fargo Burger…
By Alicia Underlee Nelsonalicia@hpr1.comThe Moorhead Public Library will offer three free, all-ages outdoor concerts featuring regional bands this summer. The series begins on June 12 with the Meat Rabbits, a group that blends…
By Greg Carlsongregcarlson1@gmail.com The June 9 death of musician Sylvester Stewart, known much better by stage name Sly Stone, saw an outpouring of tributes, memorials and appreciations from some who knew him personally and many…
By Deb Wallworkdwallwork@icloud.comI first met Catherine Mulligan at a party at her house. It was a small gathering, spontaneous, just a few people over for dinner. Directed toward a stack of plates and bowls and a big pot warming…
By Alicia Underlee Nelsonalicia@hpr1.comAct Up Theatre, in partnership with Minnesota State University Moorhead, will present “The Sound of Music” on June 10-14. All shows are at 7:30 p.m. at the Minnesota State Moorhead’s…
By Annie Prafckeannieprafcke@gmail.com AUSTIN, Texas – As a Chinese-American, connecting to my culture through food is essential, and no dish brings me back to my mother’s kitchen quite like hotdish. Yes, you heard me right –…
By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comNew Jamestown Brewery Serves up Local FlavorThere’s something delicious brewing out here on the prairie and it just so happens to be the newest brewery west of the Red River and east of the…
The drug that keeps re-purposing itselfBy Ellie Liveranieli.liverani.ra@gmail.com There is a drug that is getting a lot of attention nowadays all over the world. It has various commercial names (Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus), but…
By Alicia Underlee NelsonProtests against President Trump’s policies and the cuts made by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) are planned across North Dakota and western Minnesota Friday, April 4 and…
By Vern Thompsonvern.thompson@rocketmail.com Working in the Bakken oil fields of the Williston Basin is so different from my home in Fargo. I'm not judging, because the people working and living in western North Dakota are very…