Saturday Slight

It's officially the "shimmering season" for 2018. 

At least, that's what I like to call this time in late April when buds finally burst out and leaves of varying hues, sizes and shapes say greet the world. 

Every year when that happens, it's fun to be outside in the late afternoon light to watch the baby leaves shimmer in the breeze.  

In my mind, these are among the favorite days of the year. Although I did not carry my camera around yesterday afternoon when the shimmering sensation was in full array, I did take it with me this morning.

Seems like magic when the greenery on bushes and trees appears seemingly out of nowhere.  The view down our road was downright beautiful this morning, even if the sun was hiding behind clouds, refusing to put out much radiance. 

That's okay because the mere appearance of this magical moment of nature needs no accessories, as the beauty of the birth of baby leaves speaks for itself. 

We are certainly enjoying the lovely time of year, and what's nice is knowing there's much more to come. 

Here at the Lovestead, the fields have an extra dimension of tidy attractiveness this morning as they have all been stimulated with spring harrowing.  

Horse apples which hibernated beneath the snow in tightly knit mounds have been spread, opening up room for grass to grow and adding a shot of fertile adrenalin to the grass in general. 

In addition, this harrowing process opens up pores in the ground, allowing roots to breathe and for grass to grow. 

This weekend's rain should add frosting to the cake, so to speak, and by next week, the 2018 grass and hay crops should be flourishing----enough that horses can go to pasture and start the cycle all over again by eating and dropping those apples to the ground for next year's spring harrowing. 

Yesterday, while dragging the hay field, I looked toward the house and saw that we had company.  Bill was in the woods with his chainsaw, so I drove the 4-wheeler to the gate and started walking down the lane toward the visitor.

My eyes aren't as good as they used to be, but even through my sunglasses, I thought I could make out the identity of this person.

"I can't see very well," I hollered, "but you sure do look like Mike Boeck!"

"You're good," the gentleman answered from the other end of the lane. 

Sure enough, it was my longtime friend Mike Boeck.  He had been over at the Selle Valley Carden School, helping with a tree planting project for Arbor Day. 

Since he was in the neighborhood, he decided to come our way to thank me for doing a radio spot in his behalf.  Mike is running for Idaho State Representative, and I am supporting him. 

Yes, my sisters have even heard the spot while cleaning barns over at their place, and others have told me they've "heard me on the radio."  

The radio spot notes that Mike and I used to ride horses together.  That was back in the day when his dad Buzz used to have a Quarter Horse or two.  Buzz and my dad always enjoyed talking horses.

Mike is two years younger than I, and I believe we became friends through 4-H.  Occasionally, we'd get together and ride up in the Woodland Drive, Schweitzer Road area.  

Those experiences inspired a lifelong friendship and mutual respect. We're both graduates of the University of Idaho who returned to the community for our respective careers. 

Mike eventually married Dee Morton, whose dad was a local vet and school board member.  

As the years went by, Mike and Dee reared two wonderful kids, as did Bill and Marianne----Mike's daughter Alyssa was in Willie's class, while his son Justin was one of Annie's classmates. 

Through the connections in education (Dee taught school and worked in the counseling center at the high school) and forestry (Mike is a respected forester like Bill), we have kept in touch through the years and have always retained that high degree of mutual respect, fostered so long ago while plodding through the neighborhood on our horses. 

Well, yesterday, Mike and I went riding again----on our UTV side by side. I told him Bill was out in the woods and that it would be neat for him to see Bill doing what he loves. 

The only mistake with this particular ride came when I realized that the tree width in the path through the woods was pretty narrow, and I was still dragging the harrow behind us. 

Mike Boeck

Fortunately, with a few sharp turns and some careful maneuvering I managed to get Mike to where Bill was working and thankfully turned around.  

It could have been embarrassing, but fortunately, someone was watching over me, and there were no tree-harrow snags. 

After Bill and Mike finished a short visit, we climbed aboard the UTV and headed back to the lane.  

I told Mike that I wanted to take his photo, so we walked to the yard, and I snapped a few photos of the forester in front of the beautiful Scotch pine tree in the front yard. 

Yes, I do support Mike Boeck in this upcoming primary election.  It would be nice for us to get back to the business of electing qualified, reasonable people who will serve and make important decisions with consideration for the interests of the wide swath of constituents. 

Throughout his stellar career in the forest industry and through his involvement in the community, the region and the state, Mike has proven that he has the common sense to listen with an open mind and to make thoughtful decisions, based on facts. 

So, do pass the word:  vote for Mike Boeck on May 15. He is a fine human being who deserves to be elected as our representative to the State Legislature. 

Happy Saturday to all.