East side, west side, all around Morris

Days of yore in west Morris: "La Grand Hotel"

West Morris is getting the radio station now. A friend informed me the station is re-locating to the "Just Chillin' " building. It's just on the other side of the railroad tracks. 

Need we be conscious any more about a sense of separation between east and west Morris? There was a high level of awareness early in the town's history. 

Right now the tracks separate the ELCA Lutherans of Morris. This denomination was once so mainstream, so unquestionably high-standing. But along came gay rights to muddy the waters. Was it worth the trouble or fuss? The issue sent the ELCA division into distress. Has it now stabilized after the worst of that? The ELCA churches have so much trouble finding pastors these days, they might someday be highly thankful that gays are available. 

I have long felt that if pastors can keep their private lives private, well then so what? What we don't need is open gay activism, any more than we would want heterosexual sex to be acknowledged. Then again, the Victorian sense of shame we associate with sex can harm young people. The young people at least need to know what it's all about. It can be difficult to deal with even then. 

East Morris has First Lutheran, the west side has Faith. And both are seeking a full-time pastor at the present time. Welcome to the club. I hear of a shocking number of ELCA churches in this boat. The Lutherans did not even allow female pastors until 1970! Can you imagine church life without them today? Can you even stomach the idea of such blatant discrimination against the female gender? Well I assure you, "there was a time." When I was young you'd still hear jokes circulating about "women drivers." Echhh, 

I remember that after Pastor Todd Mattson left my church of First Lutheran, we got thrown into a "searching" scenario and had a high-standing rep from the synod visit one Sunday. This individual - a woman! - advised us strongly to not rule out "gays and lesbians" as candidates. Also, not to rule out pastors from a foreign background who might have a difficult accent. Well, we are a rainbow of cultures and nationalities nowadays. 

 

Faith Lutheran Church, west Morris

Could gloat for a while

Hey, it seemed for a time that Faith Lutheran "had it made" with a pastor who was theoretically "permanent." 

I guess permanence means there are no short-term limits on that person's service. Faith Lutheran was justifiably proud. So we had "Pastor Emmy." I attended a couple services with her presiding. 

Of course all kinds of complications can arise. Morris is not the most attractive place to settle, it really isn't. Special amenities? No, there really aren't any, although we're thankful for how relatively quiet and safe we are. This is while headlines roll at us from the Twin Cities like after the George Floyd incident. 

Pastor Emmy left because her spouse got a prime job opportunity in North Dakota. I wondered why she couldn't just stay here while her husband could take any job he might find. Easy for me to think that - I live alone, keeps the costs down, at least up to now. The cost of living appears to be a more daunting challenge all the time. 

Pastor Emmy and her husband seized the opportunity and I guess we can't blame them. She had the opportunity here in Morris to potentially establish herself as a very important and appreciated leader for years and years. Would seem a good enough arrangement for me. Pastor Emmy's experience here is now just tucked into her resume. Another "hitch" on the way to wherever. 

On the way to Minot I guess. BTW that's where the North Dakota State Fair is held. I remember when Bruce Burnes left the UMM faculty and Chancellor Imholte announced this at graduation. "I had a hard time getting that out," Imholte said after making the announcement of Burnes' departure for Minot State. Leaving for Minot would hardly appear to be a plum. In Morris we have the bona fide brand of the U of M. 

I'm not sure at present we should feel that confident about UMM's future. We might need a little sleight of hand. Politicians are of course known for pulling this off. But can we pull it off in the face of such strong national leadership coming out of D.C. that seeks to wipe out "DEI?" Here's a little secret, or maybe not: the Republican Party does not favor publicly-supported education at any level. Nor things like libraries. 

 

It won't stop there

And now major conservative leader Mike Lee out of Utah wants to ban pornography. Here we go again. Let's start by trying to define "pornography." I think maybe it's becoming a dated term. The porn industry itself prefers "adult videos." Which of course you'd never watch, right? You'd feel nothing but disgust about them? Nice public front you can put on. 

I have long asserted - does anyone listen? - that progressive women (once called "women's libbers") should be thankful for adult videos or "AVs." I'll state the reason should be obvious: the easy availability of free porn works to "desensitize" men. This is absolutely true. So, their urges get way toned down. Thus they are far less likely to "objectify" women. And what could be more in line with progressive notions for the interests of women? 

Am I desensitized myself? You can speculate. But if the answer is "yes," it's a positive thing. There, now many of you would want to grumble in disgust about me. 

And after the Republicans attack porn online, don't think they'll stop there. Why not just leave the Internet alone? Parents can put filters on their computers. 

 

Morris and Benson diverged

East and west Morris were originally set up to be co-equal. We'd be like Benson. Benson followed the original plan. You probably want to frown about that. Morris instead gravitated to the east side when it came to commerce. West Morris became a bastion for the residential life. The problem is that many west side neighborhoods have become rather rundown, sorry. 

Faith Lutheran had to make a big plea to the city council to try to get the area around their church cleaned up. There was even concern about a potential rodent uptick. You'll note that's how Gene Hackman's wife died. 

A friend tells me the city is finally responding to the pleas. Action is being taken. It took a while and it took special pleas, which means what? Everything means something. It means that the interests of west Morris don't rank that high because of its lower standing in terms of quality of residence. I guess I'm thinking of the residences closest to Pacific Avenue and certainly Pacific Avenue itself. 

This isn't to say there aren't a lot of happy people living in the homes over there. Let's not get too materialistic. The area around the cement plant produces what I would consider to be some "noise pollution." I notice that because I sometimes shoot baskets at Wells Park. However, I think the people deal with that just fine, just like the people living in the apartments right by the railroad tracks (e.g. in Sarlettes' building). My point is that people get used to the sound. 

Morris residents by and large did not get used to the infamous "cemetery chimes," though. What a chapter in Morris history. 

 

Wells Park of west Morris

Topics flare up, alas

We have some new chapters going on right now, one being the mess by Faith Lutheran which is getting addressed (belatedly). Another chapter involves the public library. And another involves East Side Park of course. West Morris has Wells Park. 

Is Wells actually a larger park than East Side? It seems much more low-profile. It has gotten famous as the home for Little League baseball. I personally question why so much space has to be devoted to the two ball diamonds. Many big cities have been removing the ball diamonds from their parks. It's not so much a preferred activity any more. 

Little League baseball was developed to "ape" major league ball back when baseball was king. It no longer has that prominence. The kids try to "ape" the pros but mainly they just stand around. Hardly any exercise. So I'm just not seeing it. High school softball was played there often in the days before this "complex" thing over by UMM. 

The "complex" is problematic. Wells Park actually seemed superior in some ways. But life goes on and we adjust to Morris the way it is. "There's a million stories in the naked city." Will we ever get the full story about the library? If not, we can write this off as another befuddling spectacle, probably involving personality conflicts. 

I see no need for conflict among the town's ELCA Lutherans. The Catholics have it made: one church, one building. Lutherans have always been in disarray. I think all of Christianity will be better off when it detaches from Donald Trump.

  

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com