There have been heavy rains all day. Maria and I just returned from the hardware store; we had to get a rat trap. It seems the first rat we’ve ever seen is in the basement and has found a way into the kitchen.

I met him last night when he rushed across my feet in a panic, trying to get to his hole. I’m told he was big and ugly. This was happening around her because of all the rain. We have a menacing rat trap, and I’ll get it ready tonight.

I don’t think Zip could handle this guy even if he were in the house, which he isn’t and won’t be.

I went out into the rain to get a feel for the storm’s impact on flowers; rain makes them all the more beautiful.

And I took some photos of Zip, who followed me outside as usual. They will be in a separate journal posted shortly after this one. Stay dry.

Tonight, we’ll hear some friends play their jazz band in a coffee shop in a nearby town. Tomorrow, we’re going to Vermont to pick up Maria’s wool. I feel good and strong this morning.

The trick is to respect my health but not surrender to it.  My life goes on every day, and my body is working for me.

Since my head injury, I’ve written, taken photos, and blogged daily. I’ve also appreciated my life every day. This formula is working for me. I’m not bragging; I’m just sharing what I’ve learned about myself—attitude matters. An illness would not define me, even though it sometimes defines me to people I know well.

Healing or not, life is what we make of it. Everyone has it worse than me.

I love the flower art photos; they are all about color and community.

I call them holdouts. The early spring flowers are dying; I have five or six flourishings. They look lovely with water drops on them.

This is a Leica Photo Art Photo; it catches the raw but beautiful power of the  Dahlia.

Some flowers close up in the rain and form beautiful formations.

Our landscape was bleak and wet this morning, with no sun or sky.