The air was so cold it was hard to breathe, and my fingers nearly froze, even behind winter gloves. Zinnia, our Ice Dog, didn’t mind. She went after the ball for a half hour which was all I could stand. My fingers are still thawing. I did love the shadows we made as the sun went down.

Zinnia and I rode in a warmed-up car, and I saw these trees up on a hill, shade for the cows in the summer. I think they had a lot of feeling. This was in Vermont.

Zinnia’s tongue was hanging on the ground when we stopped ball throwing. She was ready to go another round when we got home from our ride. I was not.

I’m not going out again tonight. I wish all of you a happy and meaningful holiday tomorrow in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King.