Monday

It is, of course, Martin Luther King Jr. Day. I've always liked this meditative moment in the middle of January. Nothing is expected of you except maybe to think a little about our times and the lives of those born to tougher circumstances. Reading a little from his speeches is always helpful, or if you want just a few words to push you forward in life, you could do worse than paging through some of his most memorable statements. Someone noted that we lean toward a Hallmark depiction of Dr. King. "I have a dream..." and there it stops. I think that's unfair. Those four words are famous because they will forever stand for something. Sort of like Silent Night Holy Night, or We the People. You can't say them without pausing to consider their meaning.

As I listened to the radio yesterday, where someone talked about Dr. King and his message of hope, I was not surprised to learn that most of us are in fact born to live with hope rather than feeling ourselves to be doomed. In the NPR segment, one prof of religion talked of hope not as a wish list for yourself ("I hope I win the lottery," "I hope I wont get stuck in the snow") but instead, as a feeling of community. In my understanding of this, by doing the work of linking yourself to others, you ground yourself in a life of hope, rather than disappointment and bitterness.

But the Dr. King quote that most stays with me today is one that has to do with understanding your limitations at the same time that you are not stifled or stymied by them. It's this one:

Be a bush if you cannot be a tree. If you cannot be a highway, just be a trail. If you can't be a sun, be a star. For it isn't by size that you win or fail. Be the best of whatever you are.


On a less philosophical note, did you know that today is also National Cheese Lovers Day? [Not to be confused with Cream Cheese Brownie Day, which is February 10th, or Moldy Cheese Day, which is October 9th. Oh, and don't be ahead of yourself on National Hug Day -- so recognized by the US Copyright Office. The purpose of that one is to "help everyone show more emotion in public" and the date of it is January 21st. On National Cheese Lovers Day it's enough to eat some cheese for lunch and maybe express some feelings of appreciation to your local cheese maker, if you should cross paths today with such a person.]

Ed and I do not have cheese for breakfast...






But we do take out a wonderful runny goat cheese (a Baetje Farms beer washed Vallee) for a very late lunch. (Is it even lunch if it's close to 5 pm?)





It feels a little wrong to take out a cheese made in Missouri when Wisconsin has so many fine creameries, producing award winning cheeses, but, the Baetje cheeses were unknown to me and a sale on this otherwise rather expensive cheese pushed me to invest in it and I am so glad I did! We had it for dinner last night and Ed and I dig in again today.

So long as we are on the topic of Wisconsin farms (talk about one thought leading to the next!), did you know that we are second in the country in terms of the number of organic farms? How about that! (Yes, California beats us there, but it is an unfair comparison! I mean, we're tiny and cold, they're huge and warm.)

Of course, I know you know that Wisconsin is the number one cheese making state in the U.S. We have, at the farmhouse, a chunk of Hook's 5-year cheddar just about every week for Sunday supper. The kids love it! (Luckily, they consider the 10-year cheddar to be too sharp. It's nice when kids favor the cheaper option.)

Perhaps you have concluded that France is the number one cheese consuming nation. That is not correct. On a per capita basis, Denmark heads the list. France is number four. We, on the other hand, don't even make it to the top fifteen. We do better in beef consumption: number four in the world!]

Why all this talk of food? Well, my thoughts meander as I once again attack my mom's apartment. Ed had gone out at midnight to Walmart to pick up card board boxes. Today, we both go over to pack up her stuff. It would have taken me six hours to do this alone. With his help, we're done in less than half the time.

This leaves us with just enough daylight hours to go cross country skiing! Cold but sunny. We choose the prairie trail for that late afternoon light.






Just an hour. Then home. At sunset.





Evening is quiet here, at the farmhouse. Leftovers for supper. Along with cheese.