Ehlana and Ethan:
We’ve had another happy day, and our Saturday evening fun and co-ed sofa sleepover with our friends can be included in that assertion. The high today topped out at around seventy-five degrees, and that’s why our afternoon adventures included a canoe trip upriver – even though the water is still very cold. This update isn’t happening in any kind of order of events, but I actually don’t really feel much like writing anything at all. That isn’t for any specific reason, but then maybe that’s news too; since I’m usually happy to write down everything – especially when documenting my lab work.
There are a few things that we should mention tonight, though; so let’s move along. First up, Cassie had a day in the city with Rowen and the women that could go along or meet them in Crystal Springs for choosing and getting fitted for wedding dresses. Michael will be doing tuxes with Tim and some of the other guys tomorrow, but they weren’t invited to help out with the dresses – or even offer their opinions. That doesn’t seem fair, since the girls definitely get to approve choices for tuxes, but the guys know better than to protest the injustice; and choose happiness instead!
While a day in Crystal Springs might have been more-fun yesterday, we enjoyed the play time with our friends that included dinner with Mom and Dad; a music jam session, video gaming for the guys, and two movies. We stayed up too-late but still got up on time this morning for Tai Chi by the river and a hot breakfast ahead of church and Sunday school. Lunch was a thrown together, pot-luck event for everyone that wanted to go along on the canoe ride. We helped out with getting the canoes and gear ready for the outing instead of helping with the meal-work – though we did help with the clean-up that everyone joined in on so that we could get to the water play time sooner. We did not try to paddle all the way to the whirlpool. An hour upriver and then back again was enough for most of us, and then a few of our cousins and their friends went on to paddle to the park and back while most of us opted to hang out in the back yard or needed to move on to other places and plans for the rest of the day. Mom and Dad only had Ethan and I with them for dinner and the rest of the evening; we helped with the work for the meal and some other chores; and our evening has included a Magi lesson, some family business work, and then bath or Jacuzzi time. Now we’re winding down toward nap time; and catching up on our sleep seems like a very good idea after a couple of late nights in a row and lots of work and exercise.
By now, you’re wondering what happened to my lack of interest in writing this report. I still feel that way, but still need to offer at least a bit of world news commentary. First up, the conflict in the Middle East continues to be horrific; that needs to change immediately – or months ago; and we have no idea who will step up and make that happen. There has been an attempt at making a big deal out of an air drop of food into Gaza, but that is nonsense, since even if everything arrived on the ground safely, that was only thirty-thousand meals when there are around two million people facing starvation. News flash, people, that means that we’d need to deliver four to six million meals a day into an active war zone; so that pitiful attempt at propaganda doesn’t come close to doing what is really needed right now.
Moving along again, news from Ukraine isn’t any better, and on top of the fighting going badly for the supposedly-good guys, the top stories make ‘our’ side look even worse thanks to a leaked recording of a meeting between some German military leaders that included a discussion of how to help Ukraine destroy the Crimean bridge without getting caught doing that – including supplying the long-range missiles and Intel to get the job done. Apparently, some of our leaders believe that it is possible to be at war while pretending that they aren’t – and that’s possibly-true for the other story from the Russia-Ukraine conflict – a drone strike on an apartment building in St. Petersburg. Intentionally planning and carrying out attacks on civilian targets is supposed to be something that the good guys don’t do; so that looks bad there and everywhere else – including destroying everything in Gaza.
It is tempting to roll on with more commentary, since there are many more stories from politics and other events in other countries and places, but instead of going there; let’s just suggest that there are problems everywhere with governments that are doing badly or causing those problems.
It really is time to wrap this up, though, and we need to remember and be grateful for the fact that life here in our little corner of the world is amazing and awesome! Maybe the rest of the world will eventually notice and choose our kind of hometown happy too! ;^)
Until next time, live with love, fellow Magi of the Light!
