What A Lovely Day

The day just sparkled. On Wednesday it was dreary the whole day while a record rainfall came down gently the entire time. The day ended with 2 inches of rain in the gauge. It was lovely to have that moisture to soak into the ground and water everything well before the first cold snap and the ultimate frozen ground. ¶ It was certainly a blessing for the new plantings in my front garden. Friend gardener has planted the daffodil bulbs and the allium. We are still waiting for the onslaught of 100 some bulbs that will need to go in the ground before frost disables the planting. We have a neighborhood squirrel whose mission in life is to dig things up immediately after they are planted. Not all work is in vain. There is only one of him and he can only do so much damage. I’ve spoken to him about finding greener pastures in neighbors yards. So far he has rejected my advice.

¶ The bright and sunny day today was perfect for a drive in the country. There was not a cloud in the sky as I left for Sioux Center, Iowa. The American Guild of Organists sponsored a workshop on hymn playing in which I was interested. Hymns are my favorite thing to play and I really want to interpret them so the congregation can sing them with meaning. The workshop was excellent. The leader was the organist from First Lutheran here in Sioux Falls, a very talented and gifted young man. So the trip and the workshop were both a pleasure. ¶ The trees about the city are really at their most gorgeous stage right now and the colors of brown, gold and red sparkle in the bright sunlight. When I head over the hill and down towards the bike trail the view is breathtaking. All the trees along the river are doing their best to cheer everyone. ¶ This was chemo week beginning with a CT scan on Monday morning. According to my oncologist there is nothing new, meaning there are no new lesions showing up in the pictures and the old lesions are static. It is best to keep checking because my type of cancer can spread just about anywhere at any time. The chemo seems to be keeping it under control, which is the good news. ¶ All of the chemo sessions began promptly. There was no long wait for the pharmacy to deliver the goods via TUG. TUG the robot was all decorated for Hallowe’en. I doubt she will be let loose to go trick or treating tomorrow evening, however. I expect next that she will be sporting Thanksgiving themed decorations. Whatever the staff does to insert some humor into a place in the hospital where the focus is on cancer is a welcome thing. That is just one more example of the excellent professionals that serve the cancer patients do to make what could be a grim and foreboding place a place of healing and light.

¶ Miss Sophia the cat seems to have reconciled herself to the fact that I am back home to stay. She has been extraordinarily cuddly. I like cuddly kitties so that’s fine with me. She has a game she wants to play every morning right after my shower. She attempts to capture a string which I try to keep away from her. When she tires of the game I can get on with my day. Often the signal that the game is over is Sophia sprawled on her back with the definite look that says “I’m tired of this!” ¶ Thanks for your prayers and thoughts and good wishes. Thank you for reading. Thank you for all you do for others. You are a blessing.