During a late-winter hike, contributor T. Edward Nickens reflects on the sight of tightly curled rhododendron leaves, just waiting to shake off the chill and unfurl when spring arrives.

Written by T. Edward Nickens

Listen as the pages of the magazine come to life in the Storytellers podcast, a new series featuring the voices of six Our State writers, including Editor in Chief Elizabeth Hudson. Each podcast episode features a writer reading their column aloud, allowing each distinct voice to shine. You can experience Our State wherever you go — in the car, on your walk, or while cooking dinner.

A landmark lecture given by Frank Lloyd Wright in Raleigh in 1950 heralded the recently formed School of Design at North Carolina State College as a driving force in modernist architecture. Its lasting influence has led to North Carolina boasting one of the highest concentrations of modernist homes in the country. Watch here to learn how Wright’s lecture and the work of School of Design Dean Henry Kamphoefner influenced aspiring architects to reimagine North Carolina living.

Written by Brad Campbell

Listen as the pages of the magazine come to life in the Storytellers podcast, a new series featuring the voices of six Our State writers, including Editor in Chief Elizabeth Hudson. Each podcast episode features a writer reading their column aloud, allowing each distinct voice to shine. You can experience Our State wherever you go — in the car, on your walk, or while cooking dinner.

Contributor Sheri Castle reminds us that whether it’s hidden in a pie crust or glistening atop a biscuit, good butter should never go unappreciated.

Written by Sheri Castle

Listen as the pages of the magazine come to life in the Storytellers podcast, a new series featuring the voices of six Our State writers, including Editor in Chief Elizabeth Hudson. Each podcast episode features a writer reading their column aloud, allowing each distinct voice to shine. You can experience Our State wherever you go — in the car, on your walk, or while cooking dinner.

On Thursday evenings at the historic Reeves Theater in Elkin, North Carolina, musician Martha Bassett transports live audiences back to simpler times with a variety show featuring talented local musicians and those who travel in from around the country.

Written by Mark Kemp

Listen as the pages of the magazine come to life in the Storytellers podcast, a new series featuring the voices of six Our State writers, including Editor in Chief Elizabeth Hudson. Each podcast episode features a writer reading their column aloud, allowing each distinct voice to shine. You can experience Our State wherever you go — in the car, on your walk, or while cooking dinner.

In the forests around central North Carolina, a industrious population labors to ensure native wildflowers and herbs thrive. Watch here to learn how these tiny but mighty creatures protect and beautify the forest understory.

Written by Dr. Eleanor Spicer Rice

Listen as the pages of the magazine come to life in the Storytellers podcast, a new series featuring the voices of six Our State writers, including Editor in Chief Elizabeth Hudson. Each podcast episode features a writer reading their column aloud, allowing each distinct voice to shine. You can experience Our State wherever you go — in the car, on your walk, or while cooking dinner.

Whether found in rural Randolph County’s pastures or during a mountain trail ride in Burnsville, our editor in chief cherishes the moments of silence that settle across North Carolina’s landscapes — and the quiet wonders they reveal.

Listen as the pages of the magazine come to life in the Storytellers podcast, a new series featuring the voices of six Our State writers, including Editor in Chief Elizabeth Hudson. Each podcast episode features a writer reading their column aloud, allowing each distinct voice to shine. You can experience Our State wherever you go — in the car, on your walk, or while cooking dinner.

Written by Elizabeth Hudson

Around 150 years ago, a group of freedmen and women established a kingdom in Henderson County that flourished, faded, then disappeared.

Written by Brad Campbell

Listen as the pages of the magazine come to life in the Storytellers podcast, a new series featuring the voices of six Our State writers, including Editor in Chief Elizabeth Hudson. Each podcast episode features a writer reading their column aloud, allowing each distinct voice to shine. You can experience Our State wherever you go — in the car, on your walk, or while cooking dinner.

Listen as the pages of the magazine come to life in the Storytellers podcast, a new series featuring the voices of six Our State writers, including Editor in Chief Elizabeth Hudson. Each podcast episode features a writer reading their column aloud, allowing each distinct voice to shine. You can experience Our State wherever you go — in the car, on your walk, or while cooking dinner.

Written by Elizabeth Hudson