The last seven years have taken us deep into the world of complex medical and special needs parenting. Meanwhile, our son who is a cowboy has worked seasonal ranch work in New Mexico, a couple years including sub zero winters in Montana, broke and trained colts in Wyoming, and returned to cowboy again New Mexico. We’ve visited him less than a handful of times, typically just one parent at a time, because tracheostomy and cowboy worlds are distanced by more than miles.

 Recently one of our older children text late at night and asked if I had time to answer five very specific questions. I did. He called, and I answered the questions quickly. And then I asked, “Are you doing some kind of writing?” Having been his home school teacher, I recognized research mode. He shared that he was writing about what the resurrection of Jesus Christ means to him. The questions were focused on Nathaniel, and I curiously asked if he would share his work with me. And then I asked permission to share it with the world.

I’ve been watching the daffodils in my yard cope with a slow coming spring. They sprouted up fast after a few warm days in February. Then it turned cold again, snowed a few times, and they stayed at their four-inch height for close to a month. They doubled in height this last week, and now have buds. But evidence of enduring the extra weeks of harsh weather remains in the dried and browned ends of the leaves.

My roots are in the Chautauqua movement. My maternal and paternal ancestors owned cottages in the Lakeside Chautauqua on Lake Erie. My early childhood was punctuated by summer visits; by age eight, I was a year around resident in the same. Summers found my community overrun with vacationers enjoying the culturally rich environment. Wikipedia sums it up well, “The Chautauqua brought entertainment and culture for the whole community, with speakers, teachers, musicians, entertainers, preachers, and specialists of the day.” I have written in the past about how access to such professionals influenced who I am today; it predestined me to be a life long learner.