Blue Sweater & The Surprise Box --

Recent cool weather brought out the smoky blue heavy-knit cardigan sweater that I’ve had and loved for many years. Its long sleeves have ample material that can be rolled up at the cuffs; its overall length is long enough to skim over and cover the hips and its waist is sort of fitted and nipped in. I don’t think a sweater like this could be found in stores today. Whenever I wear it or even look at it, I remember the "surprise boxes" my mother used to have shipped to me when I lived in Connecticut and she lived in southern California. A box would arrive periodically ... maybe averaging six or seven boxes per year, over a span of about four or five years. In each of these boxes would be an assortment of items, some new, many used ... from clothing and handbags to home decor items and novelties. Opening the box would feel like beginning a treasure hunt.

My mother was a generous soul and she was well-liked by everyone who knew her. She lived in humble fashion and that is probably why people tended to give her things, thinking she could use them. And she did. But more often, she shared them and gave them away. This sweater brings back all of those memories, so it feels warm and friendly and is a favorite piece of clothing.

What Is Sporting? –

Wildlife animals are killed for sport. These include deer, squirrels, elk, bears, and others. Let's take a closer look at this: 1) being shot hurts (I know because I was shot and it really hurt, 2) hunters shoot the biggest and best-looking animals which weakens the herd and gene pool of that species, 3) in a real sport, both participants are willing and they are sort of even in their skills ... but hunters have high-tech equipment and many advantages over animals ... and animals are not willing participants, 4) those species whose numbers are said to be increasing too much are doing so because people have unbalanced the environment by killing off the animal’s natural predators ... so a control solution would be to restore nature’s balance and not tamper with or destroy habitat, 5) there is something ethically wrong about inflicting needless bloodshed and suffering. I have a booklet called "Think Like The Animal", written by Norm Phelps, a hunter who had a change of heart and perspective. I'm thinking now of a poignant quote -- "The squirrel that you kill in jest, dies in earnest"—Henry David Thoreau.

How precious it is to see wildlife animals, in wild places ... living. Let's save what there is left of the natural world. And there are a lot of good things to be said about compassion, starting with these two: It puts us in sync with other people and the rest of earth's creatures. It's definitely a quality that makes a person more attractive and magnetic.