Articles by Shannon Bardwell
Possumhaw: Love and loss
Rain fell like manna from heaven. It came in the night with thunderous roars and flashes of light that filled the room. By daybreak it was still a gentle rain. I gathered plants from the porch to soak up even a bit of this moisture full of nitrogen from the lightning.
Possumhaw: Smarter than a critter?
Out from a wooded area three deer walked across a large field. I stopped and watched them nibble on the dry grass. They looked healthy enough and were certainly alert. As I stepped closer to the window from 300 yards away each deer raised its head and looked at me with those deep brown eyes.
Possumhaw: Party down in the Prairie
Stepping out on the back porch in the not-so-early morning it became very clear someone or something had enjoyed a party overnight. There on the previously swept floor were overturned Gatorade bottles, an empty cottage cheese container, the bottom part to a chicken salad container, and a plastic jar with remnants of peanut butter smeared inside. Lying not too far from the peanut butter jar was the cap that somehow had been screwed off and separated from the jar.
Possumhaw: Made in the shade
Extreme heat has come upon us, requiring new strategies. Watering plants and lawns are best watered early morning and late afternoon, avoiding the scorching heat of direct sunlight.
Possumhaw: Beauty and the birds
It seems a little late for all the bird nesting going on here in the Prairie. For weeks we watched the red-shouldered hawk seize an abandoned crow’s nest high in the crook of a tree. We learned her call and heard her often. Sitting on the front porch using binoculars we could see her head bobbing around in the nest. Some few days later she started flying in and out repeatedly.
Possumhaw: The joy of VBS
As a 4-year-old I stood in a long line waiting to enter Vacation Bible School. This would be a fun time.
Possumhaw: Time marches on
You’ve probably heard some form of a saying inscribed on a tombstone with the birth and death date stamped, and in between there’s a tiny dash. All of life is accounted for in that tiny dash. I don’t know if it’s true, but it was as if the Pandemic changed time.
Possumhaw: Making this into that
Transforming objects into something else is a rare art form. While recycling paper, plastic, cans and the sort is useful in many ways there are more options.
Possumhaw: What’s your hobby?
For the last 20 years before COVID, I had loved my job doing research. Digging, twists and turns, the “ah ha” moments, and following trails even when they ended at a dead end were all captivating. Doing research, writing a column, caretaking a home, along with a family, six ducks, four rabbits, eight goldfish, two cats, errands, chores, exercise classes, visiting friends, and church activities took up all my time.
Possumhaw: Fun and the sun
It looks like summer has arrived except for strong breezes and the greening of the trees, grass and flowers. Last week I checked when and where the sun was at points throughout the day.
Possumhaw: Prairie field trip
Spring brings with it so many changes in the Prairie, it’s hard to take it all in. Each season has a beauty of its own. What looked barren only a month ago is now lush and green. The fields with its blowing wheat-colored sedge have now been bush-hogged, replaced by pale green tender growing vegetation. We rarely cut the sedge field in the fall unless to make trails. Deer find safe bedding in the tall sedge.
Possumhaw: On the move
As I write this it’s been another beautiful sunny day. The weather report said rain would pass through, but it never happened. Now that temperatures have been rising to the 80s, I thought it time to bring out the greenhouse plants.
Possumhaw: The book people
Books are my life. Okay, maybe not all my life but I would be so lost without them. It all started when I was born into a family of booklovers. This was before Google and streaming and color television. My mother believed in libraries. Once a week we made a trip to the William Alexander Percy Memorial Library in the Delta. Mother deposited me in the children’s sections while she wandered over to the murder mysteries.
Possumhaw: Fearless friendly frog
We stepped inside the greenhouse to show our visitors the blooming flowers. I led the couple while Sam followed. The greenhouse is not large but contains a mountain of plants collected over the years.
Possumhaw: Do you see what I see?
While sitting at the breakfast table I saw a hummingbird flitting around the porch where the hummingbird feeder hung last year. I had not put the feeder out, thinking it was a bit too early, but apparently it was not early enough. By the next day I had three feeders out and two hummingbirds feeding. Of course, they were fighting even though the placement of the feeders allowed them to “social distance.”
Possumhaw: A new season
Storms made the last couple of weeks feel like we were living the “Little House on the Prairie.” Not just the aftermath of the storm with mountains of limbs down, sticks and leaves but the coming of spring. Spring brings with it outdoor chores.
Possumhaw: All is well
Last week we hunkered down in front of the television, watching the storms headed our way. Our plans for the day had all been canceled as we readied for the coming weather. On two previous occasions the barn shed had been lifted from its foundation and moved three inches or so. Each time Sam used the tractor to pull the structure back to its foundation.
Possumhaw: Bam goes the screen door
Last week I shared how slamming the screen door frightens wild ducks away from the pond. I suppose we could quietly ease the door closed, and occasionally we remember to do so but not often. Except for scaring off the ducks, the banging of a screen door is rather comforting.
Possumhaw: It came and it went
While drinking my morning coffee and looking out the window, I saw it would be a gray day. The wind was blowing hard against the cedar trees. Its branches swayed like a dancer. Certainly not a day for fishing or doing anything outside. Only a few days prior the temperatures had warmed.
Possumhaw: Critters of the night
We had just settled down for a long winter’s nap when out on the porch we heard such a racket we sprang from the bed to see what in the world was going on. And there on the porch were two possums vying over one bowl of cat food while the cat, Harry, watched quietly from the porch railing.
Deputies searching for two suspects in Sunday double homicide
June 29, 2025
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