In my house, the living room is separated by four tall, turned spindles, from the ceiling to the half wall that separates the living room from the hallway leading to the basement. When I receive a greeting card (for a gift or something) from a relative, neighbor, or friend, I clip it to the cord that I’ve strung between the spindles. That way, I can enjoy the sentiments longer than if I store them immediately in a box … or even if I stand them on a table.
When we were in elementary school and, again, when I was a teacher of young children, we always at sang a special song at this time of year. It goes: “Halloween is coming. Halloween is coming. Halloween is coming. Oh, what fun!” And, here we are – Halloween is coming. SOON!
We gather the candy. Make the popcorn balls – even with COVID in the wings. We buy tiny toys. Anything that kids might want to receive from their pleas of “Trick or Treat.” I always give fancy pencils, along with some chocolate. The kids love pencils, and I love chocolate! It’s always a test for me not to eat all of the candy before trick or treaters arrive.
In my big, back yard, live four large and one medium-size trees. To keep them healthy, they need to be trimmed on a regular basis. About every five years. And, today is the day for the cottonwood and the soft maple. But, not for the European linden or the “bug tree.” I can never remember which bug it is named after, but it will occur to me before I finish writing this article.
This past Saturday, Daughter #1 and I planned to take a day trip to see the color. In Colorado, “seeing the color” means heading to the hills to see the aspen, hoping that you’ve chosen the right day. An early snowstorm … strong wind …rain can put the aspen color on the ground.
Armed with submarine sandwiches, we headed west up Highway 285 toward South Park. We thought there would be color on Kenosha Pass, but the “real color” would be further into the mountains.