Recovery, Esther and Rambling Onward

 First I should acknowledge that I owe my readers an apology for my absence from this forum. I have been recovering from an injury for some time which has kept me out of the very woods of which I am so terribly fond.  Not many weeks ago I came to the conclusion that my self prescribed cane, while keeping me upright, wasn't assisting me whatsoever in my recovery. So if you by chance find me clinging to an oak on the trail or perhaps in the prone position along one of our lovely roadways, do stop and inquire as to what I am up to. 

As those of you within shouting (or baying) distance of our home have certainly become aware, the neighborhood and indeed beyond has fallen into more peaceful times. Wayne and I lost our Coonhound hiking companion Luna who has been laid to rest among my favorite flowers. I still at times tell Luna to get out of my daylilies in the same aggravated voice, though I know that in them she must remain.  Luna along with her much smaller friend Ginny were together by our side for many a wild adventure throughout the hills of Vernon and are featured in many of our past Nature Finds posts. Happy trails my sweet girl.

"I'm going out to clean the pasture spring:

I'll only stop to rake the leaves away

(And wait to watch the water clear, I may);

I sha' n't be gone long.- You come too."

Robert Frost; The Pasture

Because there are many more adventures ahead, I would like to introduce to my readers our newest hiking partner in training - Esther.

Esther is our southern bell from Georgia who came to us by way of Next Stop Forever Inc. Wayne and I together have loved five pups before adopting Esther (Luna came from MHS).  Over our dog loving years, Wayne and I have come to the conclusion that mutts and previously owned dogs are as easily loved as purebreds. Esther is nearly a year old and is a mix of: Poodle, Golden Retriever, Labrador Retriever, Pit Bull, Rottweiler, Staffordshire Terrier, Samoyed and Chihuahua. We know this because Wayne insisted that she was schnauzer while I insisted on poodle and I rarely back down from a bet.    

Georgia being included with the list of states impacted by the disaster Hurricane Helene and being Esther's former home state,  I request that you keep the people, wildlife and pets of those states now in recovery among your intentions. I have lived in Georgia, Florida and South Carolina, they are beautiful places with good humans. -Norma Manning