"Post 34/2021 Saturday 14 August . . . The phrase, "Right as rain," originated in Britain in 1894, acknowledging that rainy weather is a normal fact of life. Restored to health after an illness or injury, one is again "right as rain," in good health, feeling chipper. Compare that to the American phrase, "Life is …
Catch me if you can
Post 33/2021 Friday 6 August . . . I offer a baker's dozen gratitudes, followed by the reprint of an article on what one working group in the United Kingdom has learned about how truth has fared during the pandemic. I'll start with gratitude number 13: the weather. Who would miss a chance to comment …
4-H: ‘To make the best better’
Post 32/2021 Friday 30 July . . . Let's hear it for farm and city kids and their leaders involved in 4-H. In 2016, there were 4-H clubs in more than 50 countries. Applause for the 4-H organization near you. Their green with white H's clover design emblem stands for Head, problem solving; Heart, emotional …
Wait right here
Post 31/2021 Saturday 24 July . . . The phrase, "Wait right here," may echo in memory as an exchange between two or more people at a sporting event, shopping, or, as currently, the Elkhart County 4-H Fair (July 23-31). Stand still. Don't move. Don't get lost. "I'll be right back. Wait." Who in the …
A peek at my week (some of it)
Post 31/2021 Friday 16 July . . . Today I got up early. The clock showed 6:06. Too early for coffee, just right for finishing the blog. Though as one pundit once said, "I do an hour's work before breakfast, but I like to have something to eat first." Was that Will Rogers? Will have …
Minding the past: fireworks, haying
Post 29/2021 Thursday 8 July . . . The fireworks display on Independence Day corresponds in a small way with the day-after photos of Amish farmers harvesting hay. July 4, July 5. These two days, in the grand scheme of things, stand still in reflection, even as time ticks on. We watched the fireworks in …
The celebration’s on
Post 28/2021 Wednesday 30 June . . . Here we are. To our north, people will celebrate Canada Day, July 1. In the US, people will celebrate Independence Day, July 4. The days are marked by fireworks, flags, cookouts, camping and more, each nation pausing to look inward, outward, onward, and, I trust, upward. Let's …
Are we there yet?
Post 27/2021 Saturday 26 June . . . There's no surefire certainty that we're getting close to the end of the global battle with SARS-COV-2 and its variants. Thankfully, everyone who has access to a vaccine and gets it plays a key part in helping to put the boot to the pandemic. We strengthen our …
From farm to further afield
Post 26/2021 Saturday 19 June . . . I grew up on a farm, then ventured further afield. In retirement I live on land that once grew crops of corn, wheat, and alfalfa, maybe even soybeans--a farm whose fields in the early 1960s sprouted a continuing care retirement community, Greencroft Goshen, part of the City …
All ears for cicadas, G7, fathers
Post 24/2021 Thursday 10 June . . . No cicada chorus has reached my ears yet. Let the boom begin. I will try to capture the sound if they indeed do crawl out of the ground in northern Indiana. We took an early walk today (to beat the heat) to the Goshen Dam, through the …
It's About Now 