All posts of flourish

Olivia Cisneros: What have you been thinking lately?

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how to keep the peace — less on the world-peace scale, but more so on the societal scale. One type of peace helps protect the country, but the other helps protect the camaraderie in our everyday lives. But this is challenged when we fight over opinions. Opinions, by […]
1 year ago

Childlike Wonder: It’s summertime — have fun!

Modeling by Altyn Timlin Photos and art direction by Aaron Eisenhauer Intro, styling and art direction by Mia Pohlman Long stretches of pretending to be spies or riding bikes in driveway circles or reading Harry Potter outside under the tree with our sib- lings, sweat matting locks of hair to our necks, a timelessness of […]
1 year ago

Turn Up the Music: Playlists for your summer of wonder

By Jasmine Jones When I listen to Lana Del Rey’s “Lust for Life” album, I see my teenage self, strapped into my parents’ mini van’s backseat, staring out the window at a blur of Californian desert. My family was returning from a road trip to Los Angeles that summer when she released the album, and […]
1 year ago

Sponsored Content: Start a Summer Skincare Routine

4 Steps to protect your skin Sponsored Content in Partnership With Fifty-seven Third Beauty Collective Suite Midwest summers bring some of the most exciting moments of the year. From tending garden to weekends by the pool to spending a day at the ballpark, there is so much to look forward to. But amidst the joys […]
1 year ago

Meet Along the Way: Debbie Crane

This story was first published as “Community Cookbook: Rice Casserole with Debbie Crane from Dexter, Mo.” in the April 2024 issue of The Best Years. By Jasmine Jones Debbie Crane grew up in Dexter, Mo., but somehow, she says she didn’t know what Branson, Mo., or Silver Dollar City were until her mother asked to […]
1 year ago

Long-Distance Friendships: Maintaining deep connections in adulthood 

By Jasmine Jones  There is a specific sound: a low hum, a soft ding, an echo of a ring that I now associate with my two best friends.  It is not the sound of metal spoons colliding in my dishwasher in my usually-quiet studio apartment; it is the sound of Facebook Messenger. A notification.  When […]
1 year ago

Artist Spotlight: Kate Cooper

Intro and interview by Erin Urhahn Kate Cooper is a local portrait artist attending Southeast Missouri State University who is inspired by people, nature and simplicity. With roots seven generations deep in Bloomfield, Mo., she’s learned from her family how to embrace the farming lifestyle and remain open-minded. She’s chosen to stay in this place […]
1 year ago

meet along the way: Ethel Priest

By Jasmine Jones This story was first published as “Community Cookbook: Rosettes, by Ethel Priest from St. Paul Lutheran Church in Jackson” in the February 2024 issue of The Best Years. Cooking has and always will be a big part of Ethel Priest’s life. She says she makes most of her food from scratch, because […]
1 year ago

meet along the way: Donna Gales

By Diane Beck This story was first published as “Faces of Southeast Missouri: Donna Gales” in the January 2024 issue of The Best Years. Donna Gales earned a degree in floral design from the American Institute of Floral Design and went on to become head spokesperson for the American Floral Society (AFS), traveling around the […]
1 year ago