by Jeff Hutton
And so it begins. In almost all places in New England spring emerges as April comes to a close. The degree and intensity varies. I’m sure the hills of Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine are still draped in snow bank. But even these will feel the gentle stir of thaw on one of these unusually warm early spring days. Speaking of degrees…temperatures were in the eighties today…too warm for April but enjoyable nonetheless. A day spent getting the gardens ready. Continue reading Gardener’s Muse – Spring Emerges
by Jeff Hutton
Whether March will leave like a lamb is yet to be seen; but the fact that it arrived with something of a roar this year is beyond question. The first weekend of March in southern New England brought spring-like temperatures reaching nearly sixty degrees across an unsettled weather system that quickly transformed, with a typically cosmic sense of humor, to one of the year’s biggest storms. It carried across its broad leonine shoulders almost a foot of snow in some locales, cancelling school and most other activities that involved the movement of human beings and vehicles across the landscape; putting our thoughts of spring on the back burner. Continue reading The Lion’s Share
by Jeff Hutton
The simplicities of a dog’s life are a constant reminder of the complexities
of our own. The contrast can be unsettling at times; but also a quiet example of a life lived grounded and focused. The fact that a dog’s life possesses these qualities, not by choice, but by the accident or particular purpose of evolution should not detract from the example set. We take pleasure in all of the things around us, at times seeking those pleasures but more often simply exposed to the relentless gifts of living. The immeasurable beauty and infinite variety of sunrises and sunsets; the appearance of spring growth on the empty branches of trees; the simple fragrance and beauty of emerging leaf and flower; the silence of snow. For all of us, including Third Dog….simply the presence of family and friend. Continue reading Third Dog 6
by Jeff Hutton
Maybe it’s because our lives are so much more quiet that this third golden retriever of ours, seems so much louder. She barks. I rarely remember our second dog barking except in the most extreme circumstances… the unexpected presence of cats, for instance. That could’ve been because we had teenagers around most of the time…with friends…those loudly joyful or strangely belligerent young people who pass through this phase of life as if they are riding a skateboard through a china shop… Continue reading Third Dog volume 5
