Don -- #5 out of 10

Tomorrow, June 1, my second oldest brother has his birthday. Life is flying by so rapidly; I want to capture some memories I've had with my siblings. Here are some stand-out memories with the brother who was 7 when I was born.

• Working on the farm - milking cows, cleaning the gutters, making sileage, harvesting the grains; always working because there was always much to do
• Telling us how our cat, Pepper, got caught in the mower and got away; days later, with no hind legs, she reappeared and Don did what had to be done. It was hard on all of us, but especially him, I'm sure
• Loud arguments with Tom when parents were not around
• I love the picture of Don and I sitting on the grass with my kitten, Nodak. I remember when it was taken and how we talked about picking that name
• The Army uniform, the fear we lived with when he was in Vietnam; Don was the object of my first really sincere prayers
• He so graciously opened his home to me for a few weeks in the 1980's when we were thinking of moving to Colorado
• He so graciously opened his home to me for several weeks in the 1990's when we finally did move to Colorado

There are many, many more memories, of course. And I am looking forward to making many more. Happy Birthday, brother, friend, president of the family(hee hee). It's comforting to know that if I am ever in a tough place in life, I still have #5 around to help me through it. May God bless you with many more years of health and happiness.

Hugs

I was 3 weeks shy of turning 18. In a few days he would be 3. I had recently met him and he was so cute and cuddly. I had taken the trip of my short life-time. First time in an airplane. First time in California. I was on a "high" and fell deeply in love with him. After a couple days he looked at me so directly and innocently and said, "I really love you, Aunt Audrey, but please don't hug me anymore".

Today, nearly 4 decades later, he and his wife are driving across the country on his cycle. Tonight they will be at my house. Can't wait to hug him. And I don't think he will mind at all.

Just a Little Bit

My five-year-old grandson spent a couple days with us this past week. Out of the blue he starts commenting on the weight of people he knows. He mentioned some who are "fat". I asked him if I was fat. The answer: just a little bit. Um-okay. I need to take that as a wake-up call. Kids are usually right about stuff like that. Not sure how much I need to lose to get rid of "a little bit", but I need to start working on it.

After much contemplation ....

After thinking about it for months (or is it years), I finally am taking the plunge to blog. Most of my entries will be short and sweet - pieces plucked out of my life or my mind. And if I ever get back to traveling again, this will be where I will record my interesting experiences. How I wish I had done that during the six and a half years I spent flying around the country - so many memories that may be lost forever.

Welcome - and I hope you continue to join me in this new venture.