Grandfather’s Udder Wisdom

The only time I spent alone with him, my grandfather talked about cows’ udders. “You got to take care of cows,” Grampy told me, sitting in his worn rocking chair in Grammy’s kitchen, slurping his usual milk-and-sugared-tea, rubbing his wooden leg, a phantom of one...

It’s her nature

“Carole,” Keith called from the outside deck, “bring a bag. Freya caught another squirrel, fresh kill, and it’s a big one.” Ugh, I thought, Yuck! I said, to which Keith replied, “It’s her nature.” In the past 4 months, Freya, a shepherd mix and hunter by nature, has...

Surrogates

I’ve always loved Christmas! From the time I was a child through my son’s and daughter’s growing up years, we gathered as a family to pick out the tree and decorate the house. We made Christmas cookies and prepared special meals while singing Christmas carols, and we...

Wait

“Freya, Heathcliff, are you ready?” Keith and I ask our dogs, praising them when they sit. “Wait. Look at me,” we say with words, hand signals and further praise while putting food dishes on the floor in front of them. “Ok, have some.” During dinner, Heathcliff and...

Information Overload

Classroom teachers know all about information overload. During a lesson, they monitor student behaviors, make countless “on-the-spot” instructional decisions, follow through with specific actions and assess results. This intense, fire hose flow of information demands...