I am.

Good afternoon. It’s been an interesting day. And you might be wondering what’s been going on since I haven’t been here for so long. Not much, really. Just this thing called life.

Lots of laundry, dishes, stacking wood, picking currants, pulling milk weed, milking, etc., etc., etc.

This morning I made Cedric go with me to Fitchburg where we picked up a couple of shelves for food storage as well as some containers and food storage items that the Nelson-Peterman family either do not have room for in the apartment they are living in momentarily or do not need. In spite of the fact that Paul will say that we don’t need the shelves and they aren’t particularly well made, they were part of a project that the Young Men did four and a half years ago to earn money for scout camp and it is possible that Daniel helped make these particular shelves. Not to mention, they will be used for the reason just mentioned as well as the fact that I do not have enough shelf space to properly organize food storage. Randy Peterman was one of the leaders helping with this project and Daniel liked him.

Paul teaching Seth how to drive the lawn mower. Talk about one happy boy Saturday!

Yesterday I broke the jar for my blender so until the replacement comes, I can’t have smoothies for breakfast unless I get the old blender out and in searching for a replacement I discovered that the old one is from the 1970’s. Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing but it doesn’t work as well simply because the jar is smaller and narrower.

Also yesterday, I was scrolling through Facebook and ran across a post from one of my cousins. She has a son named Daniel and so he is Uncle Daniel to the children of his brothers and sisters.  As I looked at it, I thought, “My grandchildren will not know their Uncle Daniel in this life.”

Such is life, eh? What can I do? Well, nothing, really. I mean, I can’t expect people to never mention their sons who may be named Daniel, can I? I can’t run off crying for what can never be. Well, I could, but it wouldn’t do any good, would it? I can’t be offended, because it won’t do a bit of good for me or anyone else.

Pretty Kitty. If you look close, there is a grasshopper under her right front paw. She ate it.

And yet we live in a world where we can’t say or do things for fear of offending people. Can’t have a flag outside my house, no matter which one it is, because it will offend someone. Can’t say the Pledge of Allegiance, it might offend someone. Can’t pray at school, it might offend someone. We can’t describe people (saying that they are white or black or short or tall or fat or skinny or etc., etc., etc.) because it might offend someone. I can’t express my opinion because I might offend someone. You can’t be offended because that will offend someone.

Why can’t we all stop being offended at the drop of a hat? Why can’t we be happy to be alive?

In spite of everything, I am.