Spring in Kansas

Today is March 20, 2010, the first day of Spring. Yesterday in Wichita, Kansas, the temperature was 69*, sunny, although a wee bit windy. It is usually windy in Kansas. Like the proverbial lion of March, here it came last night with teeth bared and blowing ice crystals. At 7:30 AM today it was a literal blizzard and almost a whiteout-blowing horizontally-and the lake had whitecaps. Not a good day for a walk, but rather one to peruse the situation from afar along with a hot cup of coffee and sitting by the fireplace. It was reassuring to see the birds of Spring on the ground and in the tree getting their share of nourishment. Tomorrow, we are greeters at the church. We will prepare for the task by wearing our winter finery and telling everyone "Good morning and isn't this a fine day?" By then the temperature may be a modest 40*. But there is hope! Next week it will be in the 70's!

The birds of spring (and winter) March 20, 2010

Life's lessons

We recently received an email from a dear friend from our Cleveland, Ohio days some 55 years ago, who commented on her parent's hospitality. She asked if we remembered coming to their house to partake of her Mom's vegetable soup. I and that includes BL, can never forget the generous and loving friendship of her family. As a newly married couple with a young baby, we were able to move to a house next door to them. Part of the process was because of her Dad's generosity. The bank that I was applying to for a loan, suggested having at least extra money in a savings account to allow that to happen. When her Dad heard about it he gave us the money without question. We paid it back quickly, but he was there to help. We were close to them in so many ways. We learned a lot of life's lessons from her parents.

Spring is coming

After what has seemed like a long hard winter, there are signs that spring may be near. How do I know? Apart from the calendar and slightly warmer days there are other indications. We live on the border of a small lake (the street is Bordeulac, French for border-on-the lake)and things are beginning to take place. Well, for one thing the drakes are getting frisky. Also, the mallard pairs are starting to investigate nesting places. They come in the yard and check things out. She will look at him, he will look at her and then they waddle away to another yard to inspect the area. If we could eavesdrop we could hear things like "That bush looks good"-"I don't like the color of the pot next to it"-"It is close to the house so the foxes will stay away"-"Yea, but what about those king snakes?"-"The bathroom looks good and doesn't need any work"-"The fence isn't too high so you can fly over easily"-"Do you think the domestic ducks will come snooping around?"-"They are so snobby"-"Yea but they can't fly, either!"-"That weird yellow-colored one with the top-knot is really mean, too"-"If I get a chance I'll chase him around"--"Do you think the people that live here will notice us?"-"I think I hear a dog"-"There is a bird feeder here that will drop food so we can go out to eat some times"-"Yes, but I need to stay on the nest all the time"-"Will you be able to bring me something to eat when I get hungry?"-"Yea,but there are some really neat looking chicks around here too"-"Do you mind if I fly over to the other side of the lake sometimes to see if there are any good looking chicks?"-"Well, I noticed that wood-duck guy and I think he is really sharp. He has gorgeous clothes"-"It's too bad most of you gals look so dowdy"-"I really liked it when we stayed at your mother's place last year and all the kids made it to the water the first day"-"Yea, but those turtles got some of the neighbors kids"-"We lucked out by hiding from the foxes OK"-"Sometimes I think I would like to build a nest in a tree like the cardinals do"-"I don't know how they keep the thing in the tree"-"My quacker has been giving me trouble lately"-"How?"-"I don't know,it just feels odd"-"you know that domestic gal is really loud."-"Yea, I wish she would shut up sometimes"-"I'm really glad we live in a diverse community"-"Do you mean having all the Canada geese around?"-"Yes, and I like to see the Ringnecks and Golden eyes"- "I am so jealous-I wish I could dive like they do"-"I try-I put my beak down into the water and push off but I can't get very far"-"I hear those guys come a long way to get here-some day we should ruffle our feathers and travel. There must be some really fancy lakes around that have nicer amenities than we get here"-"We need to stay here. That strange woman that puts grain out on the ground thinks we can't look out for ourselves"-"I don't know how they think we can't take care of ourselves"-"I do, they read all of those liberal newspapers"-"I'm hungry, lets see what has fallen from Joe and Bettylou's feeder"-"OK, and maybe tomorrow we can continue looking for a place that we both like"-"I heard one of the humans that live here say the grass is greener on the other side of the fence"-"It's not green at all right now"-"I know but spring is coming-I can feel it in my feathers"-"I'm flying next door"

Bettylou has been hosting a Bible study for some time. Peggy Ruhl a friend from First Free Evangelical church is the teacher. Her husband, John, survived a horrendous crash with a truck and has ongoing physical therapy. One of their children, Joshua,16 year old son has just undergone surgery to correct severe scoliosis. He is recovering in Children's Hospital in Kansas City. Some of the the family has just returned home, father John, youngster Joel 11 and older sister Cora 17. But Peggy has stayed until Joshua can be released. Bettylou has just made vegetable soup that we will take to the family. Another church member is providing a casserole that we will take with the soup. They live in the country, east of Wichita, at the edge of the Flint Hills. The Flint Hills area is in the the grass and cattle ranching region of Kansas. The soil is too thin for crops except in the bottom areas. We left in mid-afternoon and made the 35 mile roundtrip to deliver the food. Cora had left to make a special trip but John and Joshua were glad to greet us. It was a nice sunny day, temperature in the high 50's, very little traffic (there never is in Wichita)and a chance to see a pretty sunset over the lake.