Virginia flora, fauna and friend

One of the joys of being in Virginia is the surroundings of farm life and flower gardens. I have found it to be the ideal place for reading, praying, and thinking, all of which I have needed.

Bird identifications have included cardinals, an owl, and a glorious gold finch; the sound of the birds in the morning is a welcome symphony. Maximus the horse is truly gigantic, and a most friendly fellow.

The light of the sunset glows now, and I can hear the call of an owl out to my left. I am helping with some work during my visit here, but it can't help but be softened by the beauty out these windows. I am so glad to be here.

A glimpse around the place for the far-away girl

Some are still complaining about your absence.

Brothers and hired friends were busy building the new compost corral.

The beans are growing up the teepee.

The feathers are BLUE

and white, of course.


(Hi, Justin!)

Missing her

Jemima is asking rather frantically...

Dolce is demanding an explanation ...

Where is the girl we know and love?

Why isn't she in the poofy bed every night when I am ready to go to sleep?

Why isn't she down in the duck house in the morning, talking to us with her beautiful voice?

Sorry guys. She's visiting a couple of horses named Maximus and Minimus, some psychologically challenged dogs and cats, and the beautiful farm land of Virginia. Yes, it was hard to leave you, but she does have other priorities. Shocking, I know, but true.

You'll have to put up with the bubbly little girl who comes to visit each morning and evening, and the middle-aged woman who staggers around the property with a mug of coffee and/or her camera. It's a skeleton crew, but we're determined to keep the shop up and running while your girl is gone.



In the mean time, just keep sunning yourself in the lavender patch and she'll be back before you know it. Or maybe a little longer than that.

Happy trails to you

Farewell, my sister, fare thee well.
The elements be kind to thee, and make
Thy spirits all of comfort: fare thee well.
~William Shakespeare

The tears were few, but smiles were big and hugs were plentiful. The suitcase did NOT weigh more than fifty pounds (whew!) and the knitting needles made it through the security checkpoint.

I got a welcome phone call at 7:36 this morning to tell me she was safely ensconced in her new home-away-from-home. Her voice was exactly what I needed to hear.

"May the road rise up to meet you, may the wind be ever at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face and the rain fall softly on your fields. And until we meet again, May God hold you in the hollow of His hand."

Just a few more days

Tomorrow we leave for our last speech tournament.

Packed with the usual collection of suits, ties, copies of speeches and food will be a very large suitcase. Packed in the giant suitcase will be seven weeks of essentials for my oldest girl.

She leaves Sunday night for Virginia.

There is still a long list of things to do before we leave tomorrow, not the least of which is to look her in those beautiful blue eyes and enjoy her fascinating company.

If these days are going by so fast, surely those seven weeks will, too. Right? Of course right!

I'll be back after we wave goodbye at the airport. If you're wondering about a good investment, Kleenex might be the option you're searching for. Their stock looks to soar on Sunday night.

Kindred spirits
Father and daughter
working side-by-side in Starbucks while on the road last week.

On the road again

One thing is perfectly clear to me at this moment: we are Northern Californians. My children have lived on modest little dirt hills in the Sierra foothills their whole lives, and the concrete expanses in front of us as we drive down Highway 5 are shockingly different from our usual abode. As we climbed over the Grapevine and descended into the valley, the layer of smog brought forth exclamations of, "Is that fog or mist or ...??? What is it, Mommy?" Bless your innocent little hearts; that's smog, boys and girls.

Yes, we're on the road again. This week-end and next we are finishing up our speech season with a flourish. La Mirada this weekend, and San Jose next, and the hospitality of dear friends in both places. Already there are no thoughts of smog or concrete or traffic, even though we are still in the midst; we get to see our duck loving friends, and we can hardly wait!!!

Since we're traveling with a large harp, we passed our large boys off to friends, and we have the two littles and our harp player with us. It always fascinates me to see how the family fabric changes with the absence of one or more of the family. It's been a totally different kind of fun this time, and we're eager to be reunited tonight.

What's the CD player been busy with as we drive? Well:



Steve Bell's Solace


Michael Card's Present Reality


For later:


Rascal (written by Sterling North; read by Jim Weiss)


The Aneid (written by Virgil, translated by Fagles, read by Simon Callow.)

It will be another cluster of days filled with speeches about current events, freedom, harp playing, Mr. Toad, Pilgrim's Progress, P.G. Wodehouse, bees, rats, conspiracy theories, Merchant of Venice, voting ages, our current definition of adulthood, the seven deadly sins, Red Badge of Courage, Dr. Faustus, the violin, caffeine, cars, intelligent design, made up languages, A Man for all Seasons, the Great Divorce, Les Mis, Uncle Tom's Cabin....okay, I am getting carried away. Facts are: I will be energized, inspired, exhausted and invigorated this weekend. The speech world really is the bee's roller skates, as P.G. Wodehouse would say *heh heh heh*

FYI: L.A. traffic is the perfect opportunity for Lamaze breathing (which I found less than effective during labor.)