May 27, 2026
I hope my American friends were able to have a meaningful day earlier this week on Memorial Day. I was watching the weather reports, and it sure didn’t look that great over a lot of the country. I understand the day is one of somber commemoration. A time to remember and to pay respects to those who gave their lives in the defense of freedom. But it’s also the day y’all cite as the first day of your summer season. Such a day features parades and other outdoor activities like picnics. I guess it’s no surprise but a definite disappointment when weather challenges the agenda.
I don’t know why lately y’all just can’t
catch a break with the weather. At least that’s how it seems to me as I watch
the news at night. I’m sure it’s even more frustrating for those of you who
have to endure it.
This past Monday here wasn’t a holiday,
but it was her regular day off work for our daughter. Therefore, it was also
the day she went out and got the soil and the plants and the seeds she wanted.
She spent so much time getting things she didn’t have a lot of time left to
plant. But she got it finished by sundown yesterday.
It’s nice to look out into our backyard and
see those boxes filled with soil and plants. We lost one of our four boxes at the
end of last year’s growing season to the ravages of time and the predictable
result of weather on wood. But then for an early Father’s Day gift, our son
brought us a brand-new table garden to replace that one—a table garden he built
himself for his dad.
Our walnut tree at the front of our house
finally has leaves! Real, actual leaves instead of buds. They haven’t reached
full size yet, but that will happen soon. I kind of consider that tree a no-nonsense
plant. It has a purpose, and that purpose is growing walnuts. Come spring, it
sprouts, grows leaves, and gets working on those walnuts. And the moment
those little round bombs form amidst the branches? Those beautiful green leaves
begin to turn yellow and fall off, one by one. That tree begins shedding leaves
in August, little yellow slick when wet droppings that need to be raked or,
when dry, blown. And it continues on until every last leaf is down, sometime in
early October.
Next Wednesday, I am going to begin a six-to-eight-week
slowdown. I’ll be having carpal tunnel surgery on my right hand.
Now, I did have this procedure once
before, many years ago. Color me surprised when I discovered I could use my
hands sufficiently to have to undergo it again. Last time it was both
hands that needed the procedure. Thankfully this time it’s just the one. The
downside is that one hand is my dominant hand.
All sorts of things I won’t be able to do
during that recovery period I was quoted, but the chief one is typing. Well,
typing with two hands.
There’s no question that I will definitely
be out of commission next Wednesday. But the following Wednesday, I should be
able to an essay—hunting and pecking with the fingers of my left hand.
It will definitely take a while, but I figure
after a week of not doing much of anything, I’ll be raring to go. At least,
that’s my plan.
Love,
Morgan
http://bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury
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