Friday, August 18

A Glance

 I just glanced at the date today. August 18th. This is my parent's anniversary. I am unsure if they were married in 1940 or 1941. I am sure of the month and day. Those little pop-up remembrances give me pause for thought.

On a lighter note, it is always good to take a 'pause for thought'. There are some people I wonder if they ever do! Or do they bounce about from wall to wall never giving it a second thought? See what I did there? No matter if you are a thinker or a bouncer it will all turn out just fine if you are truly grateful. Gratitude is the key.

Rambling on...Butch is out to the other Brookers (Leo and Keri) helping Leo with the tree issue that Iowa is dealing with these days. Google Emerald Ash Borer you will see what I am talking about. Leo has lost about 20 or more trees. It kills the tree slowly and eventually, the tree does die. Leo's infected trees have been cut down and now all the wood has to be dealt with one way or another. Both Butch and Jason have helped and will continue to do so. It is easy to understand how this can be overwhelming. It is the ash borer pandemic.

In our youth, it was Dutch Elm disease that took the trees. I remember that one because so many of our trees in Jefferson canopied the streets. Jefferson before Dutch Elm was very shady. I had to look it up to see when that happened and here is what I found: "The first reported cases in Iowa were in Lee and Scott Counties in 1956. Since that time, DED has been detected in all 99 counties, and approximately 95 percent of Iowa's urban American elms have been killed."

And now to bring this post full circle, my father died in August of 1956.

And no that was not planned!!

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