Duncan has given me editorial permissions on this website. As I type he is looking on expectantly, but I have stage fright…

Last night at dinner with Brad and his sister Valerie, Duncan exclaimed, “Springtime has arrived in Mary’s garden!”

Indeed it has. Flowers in bloom everywhere, fluffy yellow goslings, the vegetables and herbs we planted last month are sprouting, and Shadow’s puppies – Nyota (Swahili for star) and Rambo (popular icon in Tanzania) frolic in the sunshine. Shadow has started to wean them, which makes for noisy nights, but not as noisy as the days when the geese were going at it. Mary makes oatmeal for their breakfast, but like children everywhere, Nyota and Rambo are unenthusiastic. This morning Duncan rubbed their noses in it. Typically, Rambo submitted and took a nibble. Nyota did not and so spent the morning with oatmeal stuck to her nose. I read online that what puppies need are chicken backs.