“The frozen and
crumbling sky, the countless shoals of crystals swimming down the
night, the street a quiet sea of white...
“There is no end of
wonders and mysteries: fireflies and music boxes, the stars that
outnumber all the grains of sand on all the beaches of the world,
pinhead eggs that become caterpillars that dissolve into genetic
soup from which arise butterflies, that some hearts are dark and
others full of light.”
This is how I got through
the snowstorms and celebrated my birthday, reading Dean Koontz’ new
novel, “Innocence;”
a very happy week. Of course Chip did the heavy snow-blowing: the
path from his house to mine, mostly for the cat to run from his
woodstove to my lap; the necessary paths to the woodpile and the
bird feeders; then the long driveway, that must be done before he
can reach my front walk, so I shovel that myself, except for the end
where the snow plow has made a pile too big for me to lift. Then I
plop an old rural-route mailbox on top of it for the mailman.
Here is where I’m able to
contribute to The Salem News special reports on special people who
helped others during the storms; someone took away that pile! I
didn’t know who, until I was checking out my roof through an
upstairs window and saw my neighbors Paul and Carol clearing the
snow pile again after the second storm.
Their presence not only
freed me from my house, it took me to happy summer memories, when
Carol brought me a milkweed bush for my monarch butterflies (see
quote, above), and the weekend days I enjoyed Paul’s music playlist
as I lay in my hammock next door to the driveway where he washes his
car. (See “hearts full of light” above).
Salem’s A&A Services,
which I’ve long used for home improvements, responded to my call for
help with the roof. Another neighbor, Bob from down the street,
brings his snowplow or bucket loader to our driveway on the way
home, sometimes leaving them here after clearing enough that Chip
can get to our cars.
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Chip and his
snowblower |
I’ve been surprised by my
partner’s good mood; usually he finds snow a nuisance and fantasizes
about moving back to the Florida Keys. But this storm cycle was
different: I think he found the extraordinary amounts of snow a
challenge, rather like a political campaign, a ballot question
petition drive. He carefully dresses in layers, including a pair of
bibbed ski pants that still fit though many years have passed since
intended use. He maps out his route, with turn-offs for turn-arounds;
if the snow-blower breaks down, he fixed it with “just the right
tool” and some old boat-parts. He forces his way down the path,
followed by the wild turkeys that are somehow staying alive.
It’s hard to watch the
wild critters struggle with the snow. The little birds seem to be
doing OK as people fill feeders; the squirrels raid them, knocking
seeds to the ground for the turkeys. Chip was told by wildlife
control not to ground-feed the turkeys (which no one is
controlling), but In the morning we see rabbit tracks so Chip puts
out food for them at night, after the turkeys and squirrels have
retired.
I read this great quote in
National Geographic, in a story about elderly people around the
world, from one Ruby Timms, age 85. “My mother used to say, ‘If you
live to be 70, that’s all that God promised you.’” It makes me feel
as if my extra two years, so far, is the frosting on my birthday
cake.
This week I really
recognize the value of being old instead of young — thank you, God,
that I’m no longer commuting to work on the MBTA. Talk about
poultry: Here are the chickens coming home to roost on a system that
has been abusing taxpayers and its mission for as long as I’ve been
a taxpayer activist.
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The usual congregation of backyard wild
turkeys |
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The Pioneer Institute has
done
a report on the T with a recommendation of receivership. I plan
to write an entire column about this soon.
But today I’m indulging in
birthday musings. In honor of George Washington, I must tell you a
truth: I’m not a college graduate. This admission is inspired by the
Democrat charges that Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker is not qualified
to run for president because he didn’t finish college. I can only
ask: In the context of recent presidents, what does “qualified”
mean?
The subject arose because
Gov. Walker dodged a British reporter’s question about his position
on evolution. This question will be asked of all Republican
candidates, and the only proper response is, “Why would you ask a
dumb question like that?”
The theory of evolution,
long-proven, is my favorite theory right after gravity. But as I
look back on my 72 years, I have to wonder: Somewhere in that
time-frame, did mankind reach its maximum evolved point, and are we
now devolving? Or have the dark-hearted ISIS savages always been
subhuman, merely inactive while America was strong?
Odd thought of the day:
Perhaps our younger generations are evolving into electronic
devices, with the attention span of goldfish...
Wasn’t it nice of Governor
Charlie to declare Valentine’s Week, to encourage support for the
restaurants that lost business because of the weather? I made Chip’s
favorite tuna casserole for Valentine’s Day, but my friend Josey and
I will go to lunch to celebrate our shared Feb. 17 birthday; must
note she is younger than I. Happy Birthday to another friend who
shares our birthday, Hannelore of Beverly’s Hannah-Lore Flag
Company. She joins us for lunch on our half-birthday in August.
I’m so grateful for having
lived during the best of times, having enjoyed “no end of wonder and
mysteries.” Now we must save the future, so younger hearts of light
have the freedom to enjoy them too.
Barbara Anderson of
Marblehead is president of Citizens for Limited Taxation and a Salem
News columnist.
