Nerd

April 14, 2023

Meema and Beepa night has been pretty quiet lately. With grandkids married, moved on, or in college, and various sports activities, the Friday night crowd has gotten pretty thin, so tonight having Ian home from college, his girlfriend Jordan, Nathan, Mattie, Eliza and Gemma, we have everyone except Nate and Deb’s girls. 

There was plenty of laughter around the dinner table, and as I write, they are all outside playing Ghosts in the Graveyard, kinda like Hide and Seek, but with a few local twists. Earlier today I read a post by a high school friend who is missing having her grandchildren around. Linda and I know that day will come; we’re already seeing the early warning signs of the future that remind us to be thankful for the blessings of having been and continuing to be such a part of their lives as we have been.

As I write, I’m having to shake off weariness; it’s been a long day. The kids are merely gathering steam; that’s the difference sixty years makes. Tomorrow Abi will join us for breakfast, and soon after, they will scatter to their respective homes while Linda and I recuperate. I’m not sure how she’ll do it, but I expect to be checking on my bees. Which brings me to my last observation for the evening.

Last night, I attended the monthly Chautauqua County Beekeeper’s Association meeting. It was informative, as we discussed spring management and the new law about registering our colonies with the state. Being an unseasonably warm evening, I rode the bike. I was almost home when I noticed a campfire at our son Nathan’s home and wheeled in to say hello. Nate asked me where I had been, and when I told him, he laughed and said, “What a Nerd!”

Well, I mean to say I put him right! I told him, rather emphatically, “If you saw the rest of them, you’d consider me Mr. Cool!” Another round of laughter, so I came home. He’s right, after all. What else can you call a guy who is completely unathletic, plays the bassoon, and keeps bees? Paul Newman I am not. Happy I am.