Pete & Gladys

We live on the French Broad River. For the past 10 or 11 years, we have seen many geese and ducks on our banks of the river. Over the years, we have had frequent visitors that we can recognize by distinctive markings.

For about 8 years now, there is one very distinctive couple that arrives every April like clockwork. I named them Pete and Gladys (after a favorite sitcom of mine in the early 60's).

Pete and Gladys come back every year and spend most of their time from early spring till late fall in my yard. They will float up and down the river. Then they waddle out at the old boat ramp by my house and walk up the road to cross into the backyard. Once there, they generally like to lay in the soft grass up around our patio. This picture was taken about 2 foot off the patio a couple of days ago.

Sometimes we see as many as 50 or 60 ducks and Canadian geese down the yard closer to the river, but Pete and Gladys are the only ones that venture so close to the house. Everywhere Pete goes, Gladys follows. She never gets up and leaves without him. If they are taking a walk, he sticks right beside her. If another gentleman mallard approaches Gladys, Pete runs and flaps his wings and chases him off.

It is so adorable. When she is laying to rest, many times he will stand guard over her. He stands perfectly still and doesn't blink or move a muscle. I spend about 15 minutes sitting there watching them while I took several pictures the other night. Even when I snapped and the flash went off and the camera whirred, he just stood there.

He is like one of the guards at the Buckingham Palace. Which is kind of unique because Mallard is an old English name. It means "keeper of the mill". The word keeper means:

a. An attendant or a guard b. One that has the charge or care of something So, Mr. Pete "Mallard" takes the meaning of his name seriously and guards the misses with his life.

And we think we have bad days....

Spike vs. The Skunk

It was a dark night. Not many stars out and Spike decided he needed one last trip outside before he settled down at night. Daddy H. opened the back door and started outside with Spike. Part way down the steps, a skunk lay in hiding, waiting for its pray.

You've all heard the expression "Ready, aim, fire!" Well, Mr. Skunk sure took that saying to heart that night. Daddy H. tried to hurry and get back in the house, but not in time. Spike was hit. So Spike did what many of us do when faced with adversity. We RUN!

The problem is he ran right back into the house. Right through the sorted laundry waiting to be washed. So Mommy and Daddy H. had to gather him up and get him out of there pretty fast. They checked outside for the skunk (not to worry, the damage was done, he was half way to Tahiti by that time). So poor old stinky Spike was confined to his outside pen.

The family had to leave the house for the night to let it air out. Laundromats were hit early the next morning to fumigate the clothing Spike had so lovely shared his scent with.

One thing you need to understand is that Spike is a house dog. And for all intents and purposes he thinks he's human except he can't use the inside bathrooms. This is a dog who is never left out for long and is only outside when somebody is home to let him back in.

You can imagine the thoughts going through his mind.

"Hey, you guys! Did somebody forget me?"

"Mom, wait! Where are you going? I still outside."

"I can't believe they left me"

"What will I do if the creature comes pack with his poisonous venom. How will I survive?"

As the night wore on and daylight came, he had to be worried. Mommy was off doing the laundry and buying the supplies needed to wash him squeaky clean. Being his favorite Mamaw, I felt it would be good for him if I went to visit. Boy, I should never have done that.

Have you ever went to visit a grandchild and when it comes time to leave and they don't get to go with you and they turn those sad eyes on you with the pitiful expressions? Well, I am here to tell you that granddogs can do the same thing. He has it down to a fine art. He still stunk to high heaven and I couldn't even pet him because I didn't want the smell on me. I did check to make sure he still had food and water. But the 'poor, pitiful me' look almost did me in.

I got in my car and drove home, wanting to cry for leaving him behind. All's well that ends well. Thanks to peroxide, baking soda, and detergent, Spike is squeaky clean and good smelling.

I'm sure they will all look back and chuckle on this one day - well maybe not Mommy who got stuck with the clean up. Messy diapers and spit up don't look so bad to her now.

Brothers

Many of you have heard me talk about my sister and have seen pictures of us growing up. But it occurred to me that I have not shared pictures of my brothers. I was the second child in a line of four. When I was 2 years and 4 months, Mom brought my brother Jack home from the hospital. I do have early memories of him. I can even describe the way the living room was laid out the day he came home. Mom says I'm right, even though she can't figure out how I knew. We don't have any pictures of the day he came home. But I remember it fondly. Jack and I were very close growing up. Me and Rachel would bribe him to play house with us. Then I would play cars and trucks with him. He taught me how to play marbles, baseball, and kick ball. We had invisible pretend ponies as pets and we would spend literally hours "romping and riding" are horses around the yard and up and down the hills at home.

The year I was turning 10, Mom surprised us with a new addition to the family, my baby brother Andy. We were so excited. Here was our very own baby doll we could help dress and feed. Back then, Mom had a wringer washer and hang clothes on the line. Let me tell you, the joy of playing with our own baby wore off fast when we had to sit on the couch and help fold all those cloth diapers. But we still love our baby brother.

When he was 6 and I was 16, I started taking him with me everywhere I went. It's amazing how easy it was to get the family car when you volunteer to take the baby with you.

When we were young, me and Rachel were the "big" sisters. Something happened along the way. I'm only 5' and Rachel's around 5'2 or 5'3, but both of my brothers are pretty close to 6 feet.

When I go in and see the family and those tall, muscled, good looking men give me a hug, it's hard to believe they are the same little boys I used to love on and play with.

Happy April Fools Day

As I woke up at 6:00 this morning, I lay there in that land of half up and half not. In my mind, I think of the many years my phone would ring at 6:00 on April Fools Day and it would be my Daddy with some prank to pull before we were completely up. After years in the U.S. Navy, the Coast Guard and working for the railroad, he was used to being an early riser. Every morning he was up at 5:00 ready to start the day. My mother would get up and fix him bacon and eggs and homemade biscuits for breakfast every day. I get my morning personality from him. The minute his feet hit the floor, he was wide awake and ready to face the day. You would get up stumbling to the bathroom or kitchen and Daddy would be smiling and giving you a hard time. Ready to have entire conversations when you barely had your slippers on your feet. He has been gone for 11 years now and I still miss him dearly every day. But April Fools Day holds a special fondness. He loved this day. He would call each one of us early in the morning, knowing we wouldn't remember what day it was and he had a better chance of "getting" us. My favorite was one year when he called and I answered the phone, still groggy because I wasn't even out of the bed yet. It was around 6:00. Daddy said "Have you looked outside yet? It dumped a big snow last night." Living in West Virginia, we had snow up into March and on occasion we would get a late March, early April snow, but it was rare. His words popped my eyes open. I jumped up out of bed and ran to the living room, screaming "Oh my gosh, your kidding!!" I slid open the living room drapes to see the front yard. As Daddy heard the slide of the drapery rings on the current rods, I hear a boisterous, laughing "APRIL FOOLS". You just had to laugh with him. He had so much fun with it, you just couldn't get mad at him. But you didn't call your siblings to warn them. If you were going to be the fool, let Daddy get them, too. The angels better watch their wings and halos today, because I'm pretty sure Daddy hasn't changed and it's hard to tell what he's getting them with today.

Where did March go?

Thirty days has September, April, June and November. All the rest have 31, except for February which has 28 except in leap year when it has 29. We have all grown up with this little ditty or a version of it. We were taught the rhyme to learn how many days are in the month. Some of us were also taught the “knuckle” version. Make a fist. Start with the knuckle on your pointer finger as January and say your months as you touch a knuckle or the groove between the knuckles. On your end knuckle, you start the process backwards. Each month landing on a knuckle has 31 days and each one landing in a groove has 30. You just had to remember on February, it was only 28 days. Then of course, you have to remember that in Leap Year you add a day to February. That meant you had to divide the year by 4 and if it is divisible by 4 with no remainder, it is Leap Year. Wow! Is it in wonder we grow up confused. The one thing that has always amazed me is how long 31 days “feels”. Depending on the season, 31 days can feel like more or feel like less. January – Long bitter cold days, icy winds. Dark by 6:00 and you want nothing more than to curl up with a good book in front of the fire. Those are the longest, darkest 31 days. They seem to stretch on and on. Snow…no snow…more snow…less snow. It just makes you shiver to think of that long set of 31 days. March – Blustery days, but there is a warmth to the sun; a shine that perks you up. We are starting to think our spring thoughts…flowers blooming, kites flying, spring cleaning, yard work. It’s a time of rebirth. We are so excited to see March arrive and then before you know it POOF, it is gone. May – A little more mellow than March because the sun is here to stay. We have the occasional rains to keep the grass green and the gardens growing. We celebrate our Mothers and what they mean to us. We purchase flowers to put on graves in remembrance of those gone on before. May is a calming month. We can sit outside in the late evenings, watching the lightning bugs as they dance across the lawn. July – A time of picnics at the lake and vacations at the beach. July is fireworks, hotdogs, cold lemonade and watermelon. While we love July, we don’t always love the humidity. The heat can reach unbearable heights and you just want to be indoors. You find a place to cool off (a nice cool shower, laying over the air conditioning vents, standing in the open freezer). You just long for the days when the temperature will cool down some and you can get some relief from the heat. August – While most of August is a repeat of July, we start to see some relief. The storms start brewing in the ocean as September and hurricane season starts approaching. We see a few days that are not quite as humid. As August rolls to a close and school starts, cooler evenings will occasionally come our way and we learn to appreciate August and her mild relief. October – Oh, how we enjoy October’s warm days and cool nights. Fall is in the air. Apple butter is being made in old copper kettles. The old horse walks round and round processing the sugar cane for some good old sorghum. The leaves change their colors and provide a kaleidoscope of beauty. Pumpkin carving, cornstalks and gourds all bind together to make October a very special month. December – The temperatures are in that bundling up stage again. But we brave the cold and the December winds as we scurry about preparing for the festive holiday season. Hustle and bustle is everywhere. Mankind is preparing to celebrate the birth of our Savior. We just don’t have enough time in the day to do everything we need to do. But we try anyway. Knowing that after the 25th, we can relax until next year. But then January rolls around and we are right back at it again for another year. So where did March go? She has gone back into hibernation. But she will be back next year to bless us with the relief from another winter. So goodbye March. Thanks for bringing us through. We’ll see you again next year.

Through the years....

Over the years, we recall our high school days with fondness. We remember our teachers. We recall the classes we took, where we ate lunch, where our locker was. But as time dims our minds, it is hard to recall all the friends we made; the lives we touched and the lives that touched ours. When someone first recommended I join Facebook, I thought "Whatever for? Who would I become "friends" with?" But I took the challenge and opened me an account. It has become such a blessing to me. I've been able to reconnect with friends from yesteryear. I now "talk" regularly to people who have been my friends from the time I was two; people who have been my friends since first grade; and people who are my friends now. Friends from up the hollow where I grew up. Friends from high school who shared many classes with me. My friends from church. I now have daily contact with my siblings, my cousins, my nieces, my nephews. I get to see pictures that my friends and family post from days gone by that touch my heart and cause a tear or two. I get to see videos of my newest great-nephew as he learns to sit up alone. I get updated on what is important in their lives. Their new cars, their new jobs, their new refrigerators. I get to share grandmother stories with other grandmothers who are experiencing the same joy I'm experiencing. I get to pray for their misfortunes and celebrate their accomplishments. I get to hear how God is working in their lives and how He has blessed them through the years. Sometimes I think that we have become TOO dependent on technology; cell phones, iPods, Blackberry's, laptops, netbooks, etc. But then I stop and think about all the people who are touching my lives daily that I would not have contact with if it wasn't for technology and I have to stop and be thankful for progress. As we grow and our technical world gets even bigger, I know I'll still have many friends and loved ones that I'll not lose contact with again.

What a lovely surprise

I was walking through the foyer at church yesterday morning and saw the most beautiful flower arrangement. It was so springy and cheerful, it just drew me over for a closer look.

The neck of the vase had pretty pastel raffia tied around it and held a beautiful plaque. There was a card and it said "Brenda Keefer". I couldn't believe my eyes! This beautiful bouquet and plaque ensemble was for me!

I thought immediately about where I would sit the flowers. On my end table away from all heat vents to insure a longer life. The plaque is perfect for my bathroom that is decorated with birdhouses, butterflies and dragonflies in the colors that were in the plaque.

After church, I took my beautiful present and hurried to the car so I could open the card. It was a Happy Anniversary card for me and Allen from my Secret Sister.

Of course, I don't know who she is and I have no way of thanking her until the end of the year. This was the perfect ending to a perfect anniversary weekend.

It's not the grand gestures we make that brighten someone's day. It's the unexpected. The little moments of thrill that happen when somebody does something nice just for you.

Thank you my dear, sweet secret sister. You made my whole weekend!