Cowboy

Lise and I met Cowboy, and we met him at the doctor’s office! Lise saw him come in, and whispered that the man had a squirrel on his back. He sat near us and saw that Lise had her phone in her hand. He said, “You got a camera? Come on over here.”

I got my phone out as Cowboy told Lise to sit beside him. He held a leash for the squirrel as he cradled a teacup chihuahua with his other hand.

The squirrel went to Lise’s shoulder at his command, and went back to him when he said, “Come to Papa.”

Cowboy told me to come over, and as I got closer, he asked, “How old are you?”

I replied, “80.”

“Well, I’ll be 85 in August. Sit down.” I did as told, sitting between him and his wife.

I petted the squirrel after he left my shoulder. He was soft and warm. I didn’t hear my name called, but Lise did and told me to go.

The assistant saw where I was and talked about Cowboy as we went to the examining room. Everyone knows him. He was in the movie Deliverance with Burt Reynolds. Later I read on line that Reynolds had worked with him briefly at Ghost Town, a tourist attraction in the next village. When a casting director wanted a toothless mountain man for the movie, Reynolds brought him Herbert Coward. He was perfect for the part. Lise said when he and his wife were called, everyone greeted him by name.

We were excited to tell neighbors about meeting the man. Shawn has been to Cowboy’s church and seen him there with the squirrel. Joyce read an article about him recently in a local paper and knew he’d had a pet squirrel for 30 years. Not only that, she saw him in person at Mission Hospital in Asheville when her daughter was having a baby there a few months ago. He was in the waiting room. Lise and I felt we were the last to know about the local celebrity. She’s going to enjoy showing our photos to friends in Denmark.

Lise!!

Daughter Lise is staying for three weeks, and we began the visit with our customary meal at Culver’s. This restaurant, known for frozen custard, is near the airport. We all adore their Concrete Mixer – frozen custard mixed with two additions of your choice. You can add fruit, bits of chocolate, various candies, Brownie bites, or syrups.

Lise made an emergency visit to a shoe store, looking for pull-on sneakers. She is going to have a hip replaced, and because of the damaged joint, she cannot tie her left shoe. What luck! She found shoes she loves on the last day the store was open. The next day they were closed for several weeks for remodeling.

Here is a different view of Jonathan Creek. I am not able to walk to the creek right now, but we ate at a barbecue place upstream from my usual destination. I hope you can see the creek from Lise’s shoulder to David’s chin.

We began moving furniture back on the front porch after 2/3 of it was painted. When the sun goes down, it is usually quite pleasant to sit there.

Logan suggested a fast-paced game of Rat Race. As an observer, I realized the game was really heating up when both Lise and Logan stood up to play. I doubt they realized the camera was aimed at them. Even if they did, they are used to it.

Squatters!

Three neighbors were on their porch as I went out to walk, and I asked if anyone wanted to go with me. They all came – Shawn, her daughter Brit, and Logan. My goal was the stop sign in three more days, but with their encouragement, I made it ahead of time.

Two of us wanted to rest a few minutes. Seeing that no one was at the property closest to the stop sign, we swarmed over it. Shawn and I chose a porch sofa.

Logan and Brit kept the foster dog company.

On the way home, Shawn shared her coffee with Rosie. Rosie drank what she could. When Shawn poured out the rest, Rosie licked the grass to get it all.

As soon as I got home, I sent Cindy the two photos taken at her house and wrote, “Squatters took over your house this morning.”

She replied, “Stop by any time! Squatters were gone when I got home.”

Grandson David was walking Kacey as we came down the street. When the dog came to greet me, Logan went toward his gate in the background. We were all ready for a late breakfast.

Bonus photo: taken by Brit on the Fourth of July.

Do You Want to be Healed?

My month of June was dedicated to sciatica. There are better things to do with one’s time, but it took over my life. One day I was fine, and the next I wasn’t. I like to self-diagnose before asking a doctor’s advice. Does anyone else do that? Pain from the spine, through the hip, and on to the knee seemed definitive. Subsequently, I had four visits to the doctor. We agreed on the illness and a stab at lessening the pain. The fourth week of June I had very swollen legs, vertigo, and a rash visible from neck to toe. The rash could have been in my scalp, but I didn’t bother to look. The sciatica was unimpressed. The reaction of the world’s best neighborhood? They visited me, texted with me, walked outside beside me, spoke words of encouragement, brought flowers and fruit, prayed with and for me, and took me to one of the doctor’s visits. Grandson David helped whenever he could.

I did see the amusing side of vertigo. I told daughter Lise that I hit every wall on the way to the bathroom, and that was with the aid of a cane! Son John got the safety story. When taking Kacey outside, I hold the cane in one hand and use only two fingers to hold the leash in the other. She can’t pull me down if I’m not holding on tightly.

I seemed to age 10 years in one month. Lack of sleep and pain do strange things to one’s mind. I’ll spare you the details. It came down to lack of control. Most of us are used to planning our days and getting on with it. When that stops, you begin to wander through the hours. Case in point – neighbor Shawn offered me a meal she had cooked, and I declined, saying I wasn’t hungry. What? That wasn’t me!! I’ve regretted it ever since. If I ever decline food again, I’ll know I’m truly ill.

On a hot, humid day the question flashed through my mind. “Do you want to be healed?”

How silly! Of course, I want to feel better. It’s a Biblical question in John 5, and the paralytic man at the pool of Bethesda gave excuses rather than a definitive yes. Was I like that man? Maybe I enjoyed the attention. Perhaps I wanted to wallow in pain and despair. Most people were sympathetic to me. Only one said, “You’ll live; get over it.”

I took steps toward healing this morning by walking to the top of the street and back. It wasn’t much compared to the 50 miles I walked in May, but I am on the road to recovery.

Lord, please heal my body and my soul so that I can live for you.

Neighbor Logan is a Teenager!!!

Learn more(opens in a new tab)

I met Logan when he was four years old. The first photograph I took of him was on Halloween when Shawn brought him over, wearing his costume. Over a year later I took the first picture of David and Logan playing together. Now Logan is 13 years old!!

As his birthday party began, he and David played a game of chess. It didn’t last long. David said Logan won quickly. I suspect the new teen has already played more games than David ever did.

We had chips and dip before dinner, then we were engrossed in watching a slide show of little Logan.

Like many folks, Logan didn’t know where to look while we sang Happy Birthday to him. With the deep breath he took, he could have easily blown out 13 candles.

After dinner we sat on the porch, watching David and Logan play with a new game. Since I’ve known him, Logan has had a victory routine when he does something well. I was hoping he would perform, and he did. I laugh every time.

Logan asked that we come with him for a moonlight swim, and we did, although we sat on the deck and watched him. I was impressed that he stood at the top of the steps and did a flip into the water. There wasn’t enough distance for him to complete the flip, but he landed (or watered?) on his back.

It has been a privilege to watch Logan growing up. His inquiring mind is always active, and his body is disciplined from participating in many sports. I am impressed that he has wonderful manners and is aware of people’s feelings. Those two traits alone set him apart from many his age and older. Thank you for celebrating with me this milestone of a new teenager from the best neighborhood in the world.

Family Flexibility

I have photos to show how flexible our family can be. Here is daughter Kate on a roll (or many rolls), always ready to join in.

Grandson David bends as easily as Gumby. Kacey is checking to see if he is irreparably broken. His feet don’t seem to be going the right direction.

I was amazed that David could rise from the floor without using his hands, and friend Karen in NY said she used to do that, too. Not to be outdone, Kate said she could still do it. They agreed to demonstrate the most difficult one with the camera rolling. Neighbor Logan wasn’t here at the time, but I’ve seen him do the impossible, too.

I’d love to know if any of you have done such amazing things.

Goodbye One Year Later

A full year has passed since John died. I was aware of the date (June 11) and felt it should be acknowledged, but how? While I wondered what we should do, family, friends, and neighbors took care of it. They sent texts, e-mail, e-cards and flowers. I never expected others to remember the date, much less to notice it. I was touched, feeling cared for and loved.

Just as neighbors Shawn, Bob, and Logan were first to be with me last year, their family came over this year. Their daughter Brittainy brought fresh-picked flowers, and Shawn gave me a cardinal charm. She and I share a love of birds, and this one is most charming.

The next day daughter Kate drove back to New Jersey, and I took a last photo of her with David. This goodbye was an ordinary one, because I fully expect to see her in the near future. We’ve already put a tentative date on the calendar for her next visit. Although I have not set a tentative date for my death, I fully expect to see John when Jesus takes me to the place he has prepared for me. With God, there is always something to look forward to.

Vacation Activities

Daughter Kate petted CAT several mornings, a welcome interruption on the way to the creek.

Here are shots taken at or near the creek.

Getting the waterfall ready for summer was a big job. Kate was the cheering squad, while David removed dead leaves and muck. They used their phones to coordinate filling the pools, since the spigot was out of sight. I intend to get the broken pipe replaced to make things easier.

They trimmed the Wicked Wisteria, even cutting it back where it had reached out to the evergreens. I don’t like it when those plants collude, trying to tie off the back yard.

They took a few minutes to enjoy their work, watching and listening to the waterfall.

An Outing on the Parkway

After our small family reunion, we settled into a routine for daughter Kate’s visit. Each day began with a walk to the creek, with the obligatory photo on the first walk.

David took the week off to be with his mother and me. Some days were warm enough for us to eat lunch on the porch. The dog loved this, because she had entertainment watching birds while waiting for us to be attentive to her again.

All of us enjoyed stopping at Sunburst Falls, my favorite in this area. David took Kacey out on the rocks where she found a place to step in the water.

Here is a shot of the family on the bridge over the stream.

Going further up the mountain, we drove on the Blue Ridge Parkway. True to its name, the road is on the very top of these old rounded mountains. It was a chilly day, so we wore wraps while eating our picnic lunch. A very light shower threatened us, but we fought back and finished our meal peacefully. This was the most vacation-looking day of our week together.

Sunday Visit

The first full day daughter Kate was here, her son Nathaniel and girlfriend Sarah came to visit. What a marvelous day we had! We celebrated David’s birthday at the end of a late lunch.

Nathaniel had sent his mother a jigsaw puzzle for Mother’s Day, and they began working it. The the puzzle picture was a photo of Kate and her two sons. Kate has continued working on it, and I’m waiting for most of it to be done before trying to find a piece.

I asked them to pose under the old oak tree. I think everyone was satisfied with the result.

The amusing video from the day was Kate’s directing people to sit up, but not that straight, and Nate’s lighting the candle with a flourish.