My heart surgery altered my life, and in many ways. One of them is our morning routines, which have changed and evolved ever since I came home from the hospital. I am not quite able yet to haul hay and heavy things around – just another month or so – and so I mostly fill the water tubs and do some morning herding with Red. We are now feeding the animals hay, the grass is pretty well shot.

After the morning chores, we have breakfast, sometimes at the farm, sometimes at the Round House Cafe. Today is Scott Carrino’s birthday, I have to think of something to bring him, he is working all day. Like me, he doesn’t pay a lot of attention to birthdays.

After breakfast, we walk. Sometimes on Macmillan Road, sometimes – like this morning – through the cemetery. If we go to Macmillan Road, we bring Lenore and Red, if we go to the cemetery we just bring Red. We get up earlier, we do more. Then Maria goes to her studio to craft her fiber magic, I hit the computer to work on my book and post to the blog. I cannot say how much I love walking, and how grateful I am to be able to do it several times a day. My heart is grateful too.