This gift was astounding since my mother had often made it clear that a house was no place for an animal. Yet here was this green-eyed purr-box, and she was actually going to live in our house.

Not knowing what will happen in the coming weeks, months and years (which of course we don’t) can easily bring anxiety.

I cope in practical ways by simply turning on more indoor lights, and I may light a candle or two. I might turn on my fireplace. All seem to bring me comfort.

Well – especially in Branson – I can no longer refuse to think about Christmas. I’ve already had relatives from out of state here to attend Christmas shows and see holiday lights, so I put up my Christmas décor for them to enjoy.

Go for a drive or hike before the leaves drop because after they do you will find yourself looking at bare branches for five months.

To climb a mountain and then do all that yelling, she must have been extraordinarily happy with how she was treated, to say nothing of her new glasses.