Blue and lonesome...

Today was a sweet day of recovery for Dianne's mother - hard and slow - but also real and grounded. After being tossed upon death's door by two strokes on Easter Sunday, she is now recovering slowly and will move to rehab for 30 days sometime next week. After visiting with her and the wider family - and talking with the nursing case worker - Dianne and I retreated for a bit of quiet time, a dip in the family hot top and sitting outside in the cool sunshine. Two enormous turkey vultures swarmed overhead and we both fell asleep in the cold afternoon sunshine.

After a family dinner with all the De Mott sisters and brother, spouses and children in the area (at Denny's) we retreated home for a glass of red wine, dark chocolate and conversation with Di's oldest sister. She is a clergy person (as are all of Dianne's sisters) who has recently taken up mandolin. She already plays guitar and other stringed instruments but is in LOVE with the mandolin. She likes playing Celtic and Bluegrass tunes but is lifted into heaven with Renaissance music and she played us a selection before we headed back to bed.

Made me realize that it may be time to not only get my banjo fixed and added to our band's line up but maybe some mandolin, too a la Bill Monroe. Here's a song Di and I have been aching to do and it is a sweet song to close the day...