I groaned when I heard the snow plow go by at 4:30 on Monday morning. It didn’t wake me up. I was already awake thanks to changing the clocks. It had snowed overnight and there were three inches on the ground. It was 25° and I could hear the wind howling. What a way to start the day. The temperature never rose above freezing that day. When I got home from school that afternoon and went down to the barn, the chickens and the peacock were all inside. I could tell by the lack of tracks in the snow that they had never ventured out all day. It felt like January already. I finished the chores as quickly as I could and came back in the house and sat by the furnace and read the rest of afternoon. I had to turn on a light at 5:15 because it was dark already. Then I dozed off and dreamed I was in Tahiti.
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Monday morning, back porch steps.
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Monday morning, front yard.
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Monday morning, back yard.
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Icicles on the eaves.
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As the week went on, the weather warmed again. The snow melted. By the weekend we were up in the 60's again and the weather was as mild and fine as May. I loved every minute of it. Warm days like this will be rare soon.
As the colder weather moves in, we usually get rodents trying to move in with us. All year long we get mice in the house now and then. That’s just part of living in the country. They are white-footed mice (Peromyscus leucopus). I think they are rather pretty little creatures. I wish they’d stay outdoors, but they insist on coming indoors and we have to dispatch them with traps. Sometimes, but not often, we get brown rats (Rattus norvegicus) that come in from the farm fields. Just recently, we had a few decide to move into the woodshed. Although we had pet rats when I was young, I find nothing pretty about wild rats. They are smarter than white-footed mice and were avoiding the traps I’d set, so I had to resort to poison. I set out three cubes and the next day the cubes were gone. In the days after that, I found several dead rats, one in the cellar, one just outside the woodshed door, and one out by the lilacs. I put out more poison and it hasn’t been eaten yet. I haven’t seen anymore evidence of their presence. At least not of any living rats. Unfortunately, one of them crawled somewhere inaccessible in the woodshed to die and is rotting there. I’ve searched for the remains and cannot find it. But I can smell it. Every time I go into the woodshed, I gag. Eventually it will completely decompose and the smell will go away, but until then it continues to remind me of the rodent murders I have committed.
On Tuesday after work we voted. Our polling place is the Ulysses Township offices, just up the road from us. Unlike many places in our state and across the country, we had no problem voting here – no long lines to wait in, no cheating or illegal practices taking place. Living in such a small community, we knew all the ladies running the polling place and all the people who happened to be there voting while we were there. I like living here for reasons like that. In the days that have followed the election, I’ve felt growing anxiety for our nation. I think it is obvious and if it isn’t I will tell you now, that I am very conservative politically. I revere the Constitution of the United States as a God-inspired document that created a God-inspired form of government designed to make us a free people. I’ve been angered and dismayed as our Constitution has been eroded, misinterpreted, and disregarded and our nation has slipped and now plunges toward socialism. I was dismayed when I realized that in this crucial election, many people based their vote on issues of personality rather than policy. I try not to be overly political in this Journal, but my heart is heavy and I cannot keep from commenting. And yet I have hope. Despite the shenanigans going on in the political realm, our daily lives will continue and we will try to keep things moving in the direction we want within our small spheres of influence. The world will keep revolving and there will continue to be seasons, seedtime and harvest, storms and rainbows, and beautiful sunrises and sunsets. Our prophet has reminded us that despite turmoil in the world, the Lord has assured us that his purposes and promises will all be fulfilled. We will experience marvelous things in the Last Days and I’m glad to be here.
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Just back from voting.
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One of our sunrises last week.
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One of our sunsets last week.
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On Friday after school as the evening came on, I burned the leaves that had accumulated in a drift along the side of the road. It was a perfect evening for it. The air was cool. The sunset was pretty. And the smell of the burning leaves was deliciously nostalgic. When I’m out in the beauty of the world, working with my hands, watching the birds, enjoying a beautiful sunset, I feel the reassurance of God’s love. I love the peace that settles on me at times like that.
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Burning leaves on Friday evening.
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Miriam and Hannah left on Friday evening to go down to the Thayn’s house for the weekend. The Fosters were there too. Stacey and I did not go. We had volunteered to work at the Bishop’s Storehouse on Saturday and were also giving talks at church today, so we had to stay home. But that was okay. Yesterday morning we left our house well before dawn with our friend from church, Julie Cardon. Our Bishop’s Storehouse is in Palmyra, New York, across the road from the Hill Cumorah. It’s a two and half hour drive from our house and we had to be there by 8:00. The ride to Palmyra was lovely as we watched the sun rise over beautiful western New York. We arrived at the storehouse on time and worked there until 10:30, when we headed home again. The day was so beautiful that we took the scenic route home through Letchworth State Park. According to its information site, “Letchworth State Park, renowned as the ‘Grand Canyon of the East,’ is one of the most scenically magnificent areas in the eastern U.S. The Genesee River roars through the gorge over three major waterfalls between cliffs – as high as 600 feet in some places – surrounded by lush forests.” I can vouch for that. It truly is a spectacular place. We stopped to see the waterfalls and walk around a bit and then headed on home.
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At the Bishop's Storehouse yesterday.
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The Hill Cumorah on Saturday.
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The gorge at Letchworth.
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The lower falls.
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The upper falls.
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At Letchworth.
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When we got home, we took a walk with the Shilligs around the property next door. That property just to the west of ours was where our neighbors Henry and Dona Blake lived. They both passed away in 2015 (Henry at age 81, Dona at age 83) but before that, they were in long term care for several years. Their house has been empty since 2012, and all that time it seemed sad and lonely. The Blake’s house is the oldest house in this area. It was built during the Civil War by the Raymond family, once a prominent family in this area. The house passed through several owners over the years. For a while, from about 1915 to 1925, it was the home of my great-grandparents, Theodorus C. and Anna May Stevens Howe. Theodorus farmed there and kept a herd of Lakenvelder cattle. My aunts Esther and Eleanor spent most of their growing up years in that house. Later the house belonged to the McCaslin family and then the Blakes. Henry and Dona’s son Melvin has been taking care of the house and mowing the lawn since his parents’ passing. Kurt and Julie mentioned to him several times over the years that, if he ever wanted to sell the place, they would like to buy it. In October he approached them and said he had decided to sell, and now the Shilligs own the Blake property. The property is several acres with the house and a small barn. The house, after being empty for so long, will need some fixing up. I’ve spoken to Kurt and Julie about some things I’d like to do with the yard. Right now it’s all lawn. I’d like to plant a large pumpkin patch on part of it next year. And a big tomato bed too. Henry was my fourth cousin, so it’s nice to have the house stay in the family.
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The house next door when T.C. Howe owned it.
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The Blake House now.
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Stacey and I spoke in church today. We were given the topic of unity, a timely topic given the circumstances in the world right now. My talk was about how the Church with all its worldwide diversity is still unified in its quest to be one with the Christ. Part of my talk was based on a talk given by D. Todd Christopherson in October 2015 called “Come To Zion.” I long to live in a Zion society where the people “are of one heart and one mind, and dwell in righteousness; and there are no poor among them”.
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Another sunset last week.
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Hannah and Miriam will be home later this evening. It looks like the weather in the week ahead will still be fair and fine. Looking at the weather map, I see blizzard and winter storm warnings out west. I hope it all stays there. Having May in November is fine with me.
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Evening at Gold.
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Dan
