Season Change

Tuesday, October 25, 2022

I’ve no need for a temperature gauge telling me the morning is very cold. Here at my computer, I’m wearing two sweaters and thick socks. A peek at the weather channel confirms, it’s a freezing 32 degrees.

Our Central Oregon autumn quickly is transitioning to winter. There’s snow in the mountains. A tad already has spit its way below, with more maybe arriving in the moisture predicted for this evening.

I have today off and plan mainly to work outside. This is D-day or time to finish what’s needed to keep my animals protected against the freezing cold. It might be appropriate to start blanketing Rosie, my oldest horse. But her coat is winter-thick and she’s holding her weight; those are very good. I’ll pause on blanketing, and instead observe Rosie’s weight and stability through the cold. Anytime she seems different from normal, on goes the blanket.

If any of my animals start appearing different from normal, I’ll quit my part-time job and stay home through the winter. My priorities are home and pets; I can choose to work again or not.

The good of working is that it strengthens my sense of participating in a larger world. Interacting with co-workers and customers tunes me to national and world news. I find that what’s happening anywhere isn’t distant and unrelated to my life. As an active participant in the whole, I’m encouraged to thread through larger areas of concern. I hope to make sense of them, to comprehend without necessarily judging.

Dear Friends: Again, I digress. Essentially it’s cold and ahead is homework. Diana