Love has nothing to do with money. Just a thought -mine.

[Katalina]

My brothers & I spent some of our summers growing up on our Grandparents Farm. My younger bro & I spent endless summer days exploring our surroundings & to us it was a special paradise. When I think HAPPY - my first thoughts would be Grandpa & Grandmas' Farm. We'd been transformed onto a place & time were only LOVE exsisted.

My bro's constant companion was Snyder - a German Shepherd, who when we went to bring the cows in from pasture Grandpa could tell him Snyder & nod his head & Snyder would bring the strays back into the herd, & the 3 of us would continue our walk on the path. Awesome to say the least.

Facts about the Farm we pumped our water from a well outside the Big White 2 story Farm House - there was a short walk from home to an outhouse. My Grandmother did the wash with a wringer washing machine which I watched BUT never touched. She had a crippled hand & had warned that might happen if ones hand were to go through the wringer - this was necessity were Kat was - for she always had to try this that & the other thing, so I passed on putting clothes through the wringer. ( by the way that was NOT how she had injured her hand - just a loving Grandma who knew her Granddaughter to well). Grandpa milked the cows by hand & then one summer a machine did it in 1/2 the time - a couple times we were watching & Grandpa said - Do you want to taste the milk - SureSure - well he aimed the utters our way & we opened our mouths to par take of wonderful warm milk - then the fun began - when all was said & done we went up to the house for Grandma to clean us up. Giggling all the way a milk soaked 2 of the happiest kids on the planet earth. Remember making mud pies - on the side of the big home - near the cellar door that kept things cool in the winter & some what warm in the winters. grandma had given us utensil to use - but she felt something was missing - the mud needed a thickner so she poured in her box of cream of wheat. Best mud pies ever to have been created with love mixed in - large heaps of it I might add. On a sweet summer day leisurely walked towards the chicken coop - house. BUT to my delight on the way between two big trees was a white large enough for three or four people - a swing. I loved that swing & the time spent there - know my grandparents did too for the area where ones feet had wore away the grass their in the dirt was my proof that two loving beings had spent time swinging with one another. John & Grace. My Grandfather had built for his wife an area with tall wire fence around the heavenly scented flower Garden holding every color of the rainbow were housed here. Tall, short, medium, multicolored flowers. That my Grandma tended as she did everything yes, with tender loving care & they grew to be the prettiest, brightest, most frangrent flowers one was ever so privileged to enjoy.

Once a baby cafe was born wih two heads - had the Vet to help with this. Bruce & I had a pet calf - who would lay with us in the grass & rest his head on our lap.

One 4th of July we spent laying beneath a huge tree filled with green leaves that created just the right place to put our blanket -which grandpa spread out for the 3 of us & Snyder & he sat in the grass - we had lemonade & grandpa had his beer & we picked blackberries & par took of their flavor - " let's see how many berries you've picked - well, there's hardly any in there.". & laughter would abound. They were delicious!! that's my favorite holiday & no one enjoyed it more than me that day. On the 4th on the Farm a few years we had fireworks that my Uncles set off - so I have memories that help when my thoughts can turn to demons as they've been referred to by others.

What started this post was I was reading the post on grief & love & love lost well the wonderful days spent in heaven here on earth on my Grandparents farm were special as was our Snyder who was not seen without his best friend Bruce @ his side - when we returned home - Snyder missed us & his best friend - we're did he go - well Snyder would not eat & the Vet said he was dying from a broken heart - so I knew even as a child that hearts can be broken & some don't mend - my brother could not go there & Snyder could not live in the city - so yes love can & does sometimes break a heart not strong enough. Reminds me of the song Puff the Magic Dragon.