Browsing: Living

Over the last couple of weeks, anyone who has stepped foot outdoors in Mississippi for more than a few moments has surely seen them: The hummingbirds are everywhere, and these beautiful creatures are busy, very busy.

Every September, Jackson’s historic streets and stately trees come alive with one of my favorite celebrations of the year—the Mississippi Book Festival. Known affectionately as the “literary lawn party,” this gathering is more than an event; it’s a love letter to stories, storytellers, and the people who cherish them.

Mississippians, the weather has finally begun to cool down. The brutal heat of the summer has slowly started to subside, and coffee shops are boasting their pumpkin spice induced beverages. Now that the weather is finally more pleasant, this is the perfect opportunity to take advantage of all of the unique fun that Mississippi has to offer. Below are three pre-fall activities that will keep you engaged and anticipating the fall. 

As the Mississippi Gulf Coast marks 20 years since Hurricane Katrina made landfall on Aug. 29, 2005, HII’s Ingalls Shipbuilding division is recognizing the resilience demonstrated by its workforce and honoring those who played a key role in restoring operations after the storm.

When Hurricane Katrina made landfall on August 29, 2005, the Mississippi Gulf Coast changed forever. Few places felt the storm’s wrath more than Waveland in Hancock County, which was nearly wiped off the map. Former Governor Haley Barbour once remarked that after Katrina’s 30-foot storm surge hit, there were “no inhabitable structures” left in the city.

When people ask where I was during Hurricane Katrina, the memories come rushing back. Like many along the Mississippi Gulf…

August 29, 2005, was an unforgettable day for most Mississippians, even for those of us who lived way up in the Northeastern corner of the state. 

People were not the only creatures impacted by Hurricane Katrina. And although helping people recover was the priority, we soon turned to helping our feathered friends. As it turned out, these efforts provided folks with a diversion from their toils at home, and a reason for hope, that normal could return, including their own backyards.

I was sixteen when Hurricane Katrina hit the Mississippi Gulf Coast. At that age, I didn’t fully understand the weight of what had happened. I knew my parents were devastated — so many adults around me carried an exhaustion and grief that I couldn’t name at the time. Entire neighborhoods had been flattened, jobs and routines disappeared overnight, and the world I’d always known suddenly felt unrecognizable.

In 2005, I had just returned home from an 18-month mission trip in Brisbane, Australia. Settled back on the West…

There are not many lighthearted memories from Hurricane Katrina, but there are lessons, stories, and moments of strength that still…

Katrina 

That was her name— the name of the hurricane. The storm of the century. Ironically, the great storm that tore everything apart ended up bringing people together. I was only nine years old when I experienced the worst hurricane of my lifetime— Hurricane Katrina. The hurricane whose name still sends shivers down so many people’s spines to this day. 

Hurricanes are a part of life in the south. We recall the aftermath of each one of them, some worst than others. Family and friends rally around those in need. We know how to prepare ahead of time, and what to do when it is over. But the big storms are different, and so it was with Hurricane Katrina. As my wife and I lamented upon returning to our water-soaked home, “this will take a while”.

Some places capture your heart long before you realize they’re shaping your dreams. For Jennifer Boone, that place was Natchez. As a little girl growing up in Hattiesburg, she and her mother would slip away for long weekends in the historic river town. They’d walk the shaded streets, peek into grand homes, and linger in the small shops that lined Main Street. Those trips became cherished memories—and they planted a seed that would eventually grow into her life’s dream.

Labor Day is right around the corner, and I think I speak for all of us when I say that a break is very much needed. Thankfully, you can spend your Labor Day weekend exploring one (or more) of the greatest destinations Mississippi has to offer. Here are the top five destinations I’d recommend. 

Vardaman, Mississippi, is known as the Sweet Potato Capitol of the World for good reason, with over 100 million pounds of sweet potatoes traveling from the fields of Vardaman to tables around the world each year.