Greetings from northwest Ohio. Here's what's happening...
After a couple lovely gatherings on Christmas eve and day, my grandma died unexpectedly on December 26th. Grandma Bonnie was 82, hadn't been to a doctor in over 30 years, lived on Pepsi and Misty Menthol Cigarettes, and died peacefully in her sleep. She was stubborn, crotchety, and she loved her family. Grandma's home was headquarters for all the holidays and cousin shenanigans of my youth. It was a place you could just show up without calling and go in without knocking. She loved to visit and tell stories.
Grandma has 3 daughters, 6 grandkids, and 7 great grandkids. It is rare that we're all around for a holiday, but this year we were. At the end of the day my brother asked her if this was the best Christmas ever. She said, "Yes, it really was." It’s hard to express how truly thankful and blessed I feel that we all spent her last two days together.
So I shuffled my plans around to make space for funeral, family, and grieving. I went down to Cincinnati last weekend for a lovely show at the Listing Loon with the duo Harlot (two females, sweet vocal harmonies, banjo, guitar.) Check them out, their music is soothing to the soul. Then I canceled my Mississippi show for this weekend so I could spend more time with family.
It's funny how the world tends to just put me where I need to be sometimes. I wouldn't trade those last memories with my grandma for anything. And since I had changed plans, it allowed me to be here this week while my mom had surgery on her heel. She's at home and mending now but has to stay off her foot for at least a month. So I'm here fluffing her pillow, getting the ice, and trying to help her not go stir crazy (she's not one to just sit around!). My mom has taken care of me so many times, it's nice to partly repay the favor.
Then, a few days ago my van started acting up. Ugh. I'm glad to be here instead of halfway to Mississippi like I had planned. My dad has a friend here who has worked on lots of Dodge Caravans and he looked at it yesterday. There's a problem with a fuel injector and it's not running on all cylinders right now. He's going to dig into it today.
So here's hoping for a quick and easy fuel injector fix because this rig is ready to roll! I sewed curtains for my back windows with my friend Dawn on Thanksgiving, and I finally put them up. The back window is a skirt my friend Sarah gave me... "skirtains!"
In the mean time, I am being where I am.
The extra time with my family is precious.
I'm getting some good work done on my van here instead of the side of the highway somewhere.
And some of the best bird watching in the world is just ten minutes away...
Magee Marsh - Ottawa County
Bald Eagle
And get your binoculars out for this one... 13 Sandhill Cranes on this side of the reeds and hundreds of tundra swans in the pond in the back. The tundra swans were making lots of noise! It looked much better thru binoculars!
Well folks, thanks for staying connected and thanks for reading the blog. I am playing lots of music around my parents' living room for now, but soon I'll be out around a campfire near you. I hope you are finding what you need to heal your soul wherever you are.
Peace, Birds, Music, and Love.
Megan