Skip to main content

Playing in Dirt

"Mom, I think you need to get out more." My 17 year old daughter announced one afternoon.

"Really?" I answered as I dug my shovel deep into the damp soil, turning the clumps of dirt.

"Yeah. Maybe go hang out with friends," she continued.

I grunted as I leaned down to inspect the dirt, breaking it apart in my hands, looking closer. "Holy crap! Look at this juicy one! Who wants it?" I dug out a fat worm and held it out. "C'mere Little Red Hen! Look at this one!" The chickens gathered around me. One gulped the juicy worm down. The others pecked at the clod of dirt in my hands.

"Maybe make some friends..." my daughter continued.

"Jackpot! Check it out, Alyssa!" I held up a clump of mud with 5 or 6 earthworms hanging out of it. "Here! Grab one and give it to one of the chickens! They love it!"

"Maybe go to a Yoga class or something with other human women," she finished, backing away.

My daughter is so weird.

Comments

  1. KimSeptember 24, 2012 at 7:25 PM

    Couldn't she tell you were already part of a hen party?

    And these chicks weren't judging how you looked or asking you to do them favors.

    Sounds like a perfect social situation to me.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Amy MorrowOctober 23, 2012 at 1:07 AM

    I love your sense of humor!! So glad you're my friend. :)

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How To Be A Dedicated Neurotic

Going through old files from graduate school, I found an invaluable pamphlet. Be a Dedicated Neurotic Remember the Past. . . and Regret it. Abhor the Present. Dread the Future. 1. Become preoccupied with the body, and make a long list of symptoms. Make them sound very clinical and professional... 2. BLAME your boss, your spouse, your partner, your neighbor, your kid. THEY are responsible for your miseries. 3. Feel trapped. You couldn't possibly declare your own independence without hurting someone's feelings. 4. Overeat. Rationalize and eat! Eat an insulated wall around yourself. Diet for a few days and say it doesn't work for you. 5. Self-pity. No matter what, feel sorry for yourself. Agonize over things about which no one cares. 6. Don't ever try. That way nobody can really accuse you of failure. You can always say, "But I could have done it." 7. Stress how shy you are. Insist that the world must come to you. You're special. 8. Your agg...
11 comments
Read more

Pioneer Trek

Utah was founded by the Mormon pioneers in 1847 after enduring unimaginable losses and seeking a place of peace. July 24th marks the anniversary that the first wagon trains arrived in the Salt Lake Valley. Their numbers were greatly diminished by crossing the country in wagons and handcarts, dying of scurvy, tuberculous, malaria, starvation, unidentified fevers, and freezing to death. This, they found preferable to facing the extermination order put forth by Governor Boggs of Missouri. I believe this is the most courageous act of faith - to leave all they had that was familiar and travel the rough terrain in the unknown in search of a place where they could worship in peace. My daughters left this morning for a small re-creation of what the pioneers experienced. I don't love the idea since I know so many of the pioneers died but it is a way for many of the youth to connect to their ancestors and understand what many of the early members endured for their faith. The youth were asked...
5 comments
Read more

Public Notice

Dear friends, neighbors, enemies, and people I don't know: Understand that it all started out very innocently. I planned my garden carefully. Everything had a place and plenty of room. Within my planning, I included three spaghetti squash plants, two yellow squash and two zucchini. Out of the 7 plants, two came up and they weren't my beloved spaghetti squash. This year we have added two grow boxes to the south side of the house. One of which we brought in a garden mix of soil and I planted neat little rows of seeds. The other was left untouched. All I saw was dirt. So I started pushing squash seeds into it. I don't even know what kind they are. When they came up, I transplanted them so they would have room to grow. I also noticed I had two squash plants (pumpkins, perhaps?) growing in the main garden that I hadn't planted. Apparently, I had also dropped a seed in the dirt outside the grow boxes and it's coming up as a squash plant, too. Last count, I hav...
9 comments
Read more