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| lilac bud! |
Daylight Savings Time is affecting us all more than I initially thought. Even Poppy is slower to get going in the morning; yesterday she spent a lot of time "sunbathing."
At the school meeting Monday evening, the Costa Rica trip organizer made it clear that if it is legal to travel, he's going, as he has materials and supplies to deliver. (He also grew up as a missionary kid in Africa, and feels he's lived through far more dangerous circumstances.) So far, all the seniors but one are still planning to go, and I hope they do. The burden of shearing (and trimming the feet of) 11 woolly Shetlands is starting to weigh heavily on me, and Brian being gone for two weeks would clear my slate a little. If I stay on task (and torture my puppy with extra crate time), I should be able to get them all done in that time . . . if my back holds out. My lower back has been extremely cranky for unknown reasons since yesterday, and NSAIDs aren't helping much. Getting a start on hoof trimming was on my list today, but so far I've been hesitant to try it.
Yesterday afternoon, the "neighbor boy" (the neighbors' dog) came over to play with Poppy. Toby is a bit bigger and older than Poppy, and they played hard. Before long, the neighbor commented that Poppy's limp seemed worse. I wasn't too worried about my 'tough terrier,' but later in the house I noticed that the splinted leg didn't look as straight as it had been. I picked Poppy up and investigated further; there seemed to be some definite 'play' in the formerly-rigid splint. Wondering if it might have broken, I taped a tongue depressor to it to help stabilize it until Rick got home. Sure enough:
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| Today, after Toby discovered –3X! – that he could get to our place all by himself |
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Last Sabbath Brian had that hat tucked in his belt (he was decked out in full "redneck" attire) as we were leaving for church. I told him to leave it at home; church is not the place for campaigning. He said he wasn't going to wear it at church; he was taking it for the memorial service we went to later that afternoon. I asked him to put it in the trunk because I would be transporting an elderly Dutch couple (ages 90 and 95) to and from church, and they would not want to see it. He asked why, and I reminded him that they lived through WWII. They witnessed the rise of fascism, the results of racism and state-sponsored discrimination, dictators drunk on dreams of world domination – and they recognize all those things in our current administration. His reply? "If they want to be Left-Wing Liberals, that's their problem." 😳😱😖 I love my son, but sometimes it's awfully hard to like him....
John Pavlovitz' Instagram post this morning said it well. (I don't see eye to eye with Pastor John on everything, either, but enthusiastically cheer him on as the rare evangelical Christian leader who follows God, not a demagogue.) You can double-click on it to biggify.
That's it from the mostly 'Humane Middle' at . . .
9 comments:
Your thoughts?
My thoughts. Oh, gosh. Politically, we are living in extremely difficult times and it's getting very hard to hold tightly to our personal beliefs and keep the mantra, "All is going to be well," going. Your son is at an age where he feels the needs to spread his wings and part of that stage in nearly every teenager's life is showing contrariness to just about everything his parents say or do. It's a natural part of a teenager growing up, doing and saying stupid things and, hopefully, leading them (eventually) back to the path on which he was raised. It's hard to remind ourselves that it is just a phase and he will change when his brain reaches maturity. (So wrenching for a parent to live through though!)
Maybe Poppy, in her healing and rehabilitation, will be willing to spend R&R time in her crate so you can get your sheep chores done. Do be careful of your back. Take small work, small rest periods so you don't end up with a PVC pipe holding you up!
I don't want to get into politic stuff right now. I will say though, I've never heard of Pavlovitz before.
I'm sorry about your painful back. I've had some of that too, recently, along with my severe hip pain. Enough whining from me!
It's sad to know about sweet Poppy's broken splint. It must have caused or allowed a certain amount of pain. I hope you can all hang in there till the vet appointment.
I was surprised at how much Toby looks like my daughter's new little guy! Rico has of a reddish gold color and is smaller. His ears stand up like Poppy's do.
Love Mama Pea's advice in her last paragraph!!
Love Mr. Pavlovitz statements. That's how I feel.
If you could have a talk with Brian, without him getting all defensive, could you ask his thoughts on each of the "I beleive" statements? I think it would be interesting to hear his answers and reasons behind them...
Well, he still has maturing to do - typical of males, I fear. My son wasn't fully grown until his late 20's. It is his right to hold whatever views his wants (well, it is his right after he turns 18) but maturity and good manners would demand that he not be argumentative about it - especially when his opinions are not being challenge by folks in their 90s (especially with their history.) I would guess that about 50% of his acting out in this regard is due to his desire to push away from parental control. But he may truly be a far right conservative. *sigh*. I understand the "like" vs "love" statement. It will be interesting to see what he is politically once he has a job, is independent - paying his own bill and taxes.
Frankly, I don't get the trumpophobia. Like every other president, I agree with some things he's done and I disagree with others. But I don't see how anything justifies hating him.
Politics has devolved into a big king of the hill brawl. It now has absolutely nothing to do with people's needs and solving problems, and everything to do with power. I'm sick of the name calling - it's nothing buy manipulative. I'm sick of attacking people because they have a different opinion. Since when is it okay to beat somebody up because of a stupid hat? Or destroy somebody else's shirt?
Good luck with your list. Trouble is, it has polarized all the issues in an attempt to stuff everybody into one of two political boxes. Real life doesn't work that way.
Yes, Mama Pea, he has all the wisdom of an 18-year-old and in his mind right now we and his grandparents have none. I hear we'll get a whole lot smarter as he gets older; ha! Poppy will not be happy with extra crate time, but we will do what we have to do.
Pain is such a wet blanket, isn't it, Jeanne? My back is feeling better this morning; I'm going to stay on the naproxen so it doesn't flare back up.
Elaine, my dear old friends have much more history than I indicated. Both of them were POWs in WWII; they shared some of their separate experiences with my homeschool co-op class called "Living History: WWII." They have been there, lived that; if THEY see strong parallels in present-day politics, it's not just "opinion," it's experience.
Leigh, you refer to 'trumpophobia' and hating trump; are you referencing something in my post or the comments? Because I don't see it (or feel it). As for Brian's shirt and hat, we are not fans of being "in your face" with ANYthing; that's just being pugnacious and we don't support that. We don't wear clothing and wave signs in favor of any political candidate or issue; we aren't comfortable with others flaunting their sexual preferences/practices instead of keeping it private where it belongs; we believe our Christianity should be PRACTICED more than PREACHED. That includes considering all the issues and candidates, voting prayerfully for one of the flawed options, while being thankful that God is ultimately in control of the nations.
OK, at first I thought, 'Keep Quiet' then I thought, 'Speak.' So I'm at it....
Remember, I'm an old guy who helped raise teenage hellions. They are great guys now with families. My best advice to you: Don't take the bait! Your son, like almost every other boy I've ever know, including me, is tremendously anxious about leaving the nest and is striking out in strange but 'normal' ways to show it. He's wanting to pick a fight with you so he'll still know you care. Go figure. There are two ways to sell: logic and emotion. We as parents are trying to use logic. Most salespeople (and our DJT is a salesman if there ever was one) uses emotion. Pretty girls holding beer cans ain't logical - but emotionally it sells a lot more beer than a scientist showing how much hooch you need to down in order to get buzzy. Let your son know it is important to you that he is thinking - and that as long as you know he is thinking, you're OK respecting his viewpoint. Ask him to help educate you as to why his positions should be yours. My Grandmother always set the topic of conversation at Sunday dinner. If things got boring or too heated, she would stop the music and instruct everyone to change sides for awhile. I grew up thinking this was normal.... She didn't care WHAT you thought, but whatever it was, you'd better be able to defend your position and prove to her that you were thinking! And it will take about another 20 years to see the results.
I can't tell you how much Poppy's face looks like Annie's! It is amazing. Focus on dog fun. They don't last as long as children, but they are more fun while you have 'em.
Speaking from the 'bad back' club: Don't push yourself over the edge! I know...and relearn frequently from not following my own advice.
The sun will pretty predictably arise in the east tomorrow morning - and for most mornings following. Breath in from time to time.
And now I'll but out of your business. Cheers and good luck!
Oops, Cappy, I missed your comment in the first go-round! Once in awhile I can have those kinds of conversations with Brian, although the opportunities are much diminished when I'm not operating "Mom's Taxi Service." The internet also hampers discussions because it's such a tempting time-suck, not to mention the constant bombardment he gets of increasingly extreme messaging thanks to the algorithms and what he's already looked at/liked/shared. It is easy to see how some people get radicalized just by that!
Tim, PLEASE don't ever butt out of my business when I ask for input! I value your lived experience and wise advice; I shared your comment with a co-worker this morning and she said, "That's good; that's REALLY good." Your grandmother was a wise and smart woman; may her kind increase (even as I realize that in this world of talking heads, sound bites, tweets, and memes, her kind has become practically extinct).
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