Smile gently. Sometimes it's all you can do.

Made me smile this week:

1. Listening to my husband hum gently to the grand baby as they rocked, while she drank her evening milk. His musical selection? The Star Spangled Banner.

2. Watching my husband herd a wolf spider from the middle of the kitchen out the back door. Hyah! Hyah! Git on outa here! Didn't know you could do that, but I witnessed it myself. The spider ran along and Gene cut it off at the pass, until it went out the door. I'da just stomped on it, but I was barefoot.

3. Conversing with the last kindergartner standing (sitting) in the car pick up line at school on Wednesday. "I'm a bus rider," he declared proudly, 15 minutes after all buses had departed. "OK friend, let's go make some phone calls." Sigh.

4. Leading 480 students in the Pledge of Allegiance and national anthem facing the empty spot where the flag usually stands in our Friday assemblies. They turn in unison to that spot and begin pledging without hesitation, after years of practice. I'm sure our kinders believe it's odd protocol to pledge to an imaginary flag, since this is the 2nd week I forgot. I assigned our 5th grade to bring the flags in next week!



5. Conversing with the last kindergartner standing (sitting) in the car pick up line on Friday. "How do you usually get home, friend?" "Oh, I always ride the bus, but I decided I wanted to be a car rider today." Sigh. "Let's go make some phone calls." We really do have very careful procedures for the after-school departure, especially for kindergartners. But they are sometimes slippery and very determined!

Our first full week of school was enjoyable, if you don't count the Pink Eye I contracted. But I think that most likely came from our granddaughter who had a cold last weekend, not the 85 million small elementary children's hands I've held this week to guide them toward the classroom, cafeteria, playground, restroom, car line, office, away from reluctant mamas, etc. I should buy stock in anti-bacterial hand soap, since I go through a bottle a week, just about.

The weekend weather promises to be cool enough for me to tackle that weedy flower bed in front. It has been so incredibly HOT for so long that I had given up all outdoor activity that wasn't scooting quickly from one air-conditioned locale to another.

Becoming reacquainted with my garden will make me smile for certain.

Disasters of the Crispy Variety

I drove past the crispiest corn field I've ever seen this evening on the way to Bible study in Yukon, America. We don't grow much corn around here. Now I see why. Farmers mostly grow wheat that's planted in the fall, nibbled by cattle all the wet winter, then harvested in the spring.

It hasn't rained in weeks, and the temps have run around 100 for days. I keep watering, but everything's pretty sunburned. Except the weeds. They seem to manage, no matter what the conditions.

Since nobody wants to see photos of dry, dead stuff, I'll add some beautiful pictures from the Cheekwood Botanical Garden in Nashville which we visited a few weeks ago with daughter Charlotte and her husband Stan, the photographer of these lovely images. What made the garden even more wonderful than usual was the addition of blown glass pieces from the artist Chihuly. The sun on the glass, flowers and water was spectacular.



















































Meanwhile, back in Okie; yes, the state that recently declared a state of emergency for flooding; we'll survive the killing heat. Although the corn didn't make it.