tao1776

New England winters can turn on a dime. Warm, cold, snow, rain, ice, sun. Changes can occur within a span of hours. Our latest storm dropped a fluffy twenty nine inches with Monday calling for temperatures in the forties accompanied by rain. Oh-oh. We will have a mess on our hands. But I think the biggest challenge facing our girls is boredom - not the weather. They are a hearty lot but they are still prone to frostbite and temperatures even too cold for good New England stock. So one does need to keep an eye out. Katie was found in a ball and most unresponsive but a few weeks ago. She enjoys coming to the "big house" but it was apparent that she was not pulling a fast one. Not this time anyway. Once inside it took hours to bring her around. But within a day, she was singing the blues like Mamie Smith. They will pick through straw for hours. Especially when littered with corn. A head of cabbage hung like soap on a rope. Treats and warm water laced with molasses....

February 10th will be the start of the Chinese New Year. The year of the snake. As memory serves, the day before was traditionally a day to clean and set things in order. The evening was a time of reunion. It sounded to me that it resembled our thanksgiving. Feast and family and all that it entails. Dynamics. History. The circle of life in a full view, yet not often understood or valued until the circle has turned closer to our own 365. Since my divorce, that which I miss most is when my four children came home with their friends, husband and boyfriends, girlfriends and children. Overlooking the "human pigeon" behavior of my heroin addicted son and the drunken behavior of my now ex wife, it was almost perfect in it's family imperfection. Simplicity and movement within the cycle of life has become almost unknown; and I too am at present, among the masses. I will however roll along to find that which is down will be once again be, up" like the hands of time. A...