A Joyful Noise: Musings from a southern perspective

By contributing columnist Joyce Judd:

We like to sleep with the windows open. Yes, it’s that pollen time of year, but it’s so lovely having the windows open with the cool air coming into the room – especially if it rains in the night or the wind blows and the breeze comes across your pillow. It’s cool enough to snuggle down under the covers while listening to the night owls and other outside noises, somehow reminiscent of our childhoods.

We’ve determined the crack of dawn must be around 5:00 a.m. For the past few weeks, with the windows open, we’ve realized that it is dead silent at 4:55, but at 5:00, just like an alarm clock, there’s 1 bird that starts off singing. Within 10 minutes, everyone else in the bird world has joined in, and it’s a raucous sound that greets the day.

By 5:45, everyone has settled down, and they’re flitting around the yard – at the feeders, bird baths and garden – helping themselves to breakfast. The young birds are feisty and playing ‘tag’ as they chase each other. It truly is a lovely way to waken (albeit a little earlier than needed for us); but, it puts me in mind of that song that begins, “Let the whole creation cry, Halleluiah!” The birds are doing their part.

We like to sit on the swing (we make it outside around 6:30, in spite of the birdsong) with our morning coffee. Around 7:00, the geese begin lifting off the Apalache Lake just over the hill behind our house.

Do you know about geese? They mate for life, they always fly in groups, always fly in a “V” formation, and they honk as they fly. The honking is their way of encouraging the ‘point man’ to continue leading, since the the hardest job in the “V” is cutting through the air. We humans could learn a lot from these animals if we simply would. Sometimes, as they’re flying over us, they go quiet (not honking), and the sounds of their wings, a ‘whooshing’ sound, is beautiful. We are very blessed in our house.

We’ve moved the herbs to the back door area. I discovered last year I’m not good at thinking ahead. When I would realize that basil or chives or mint would be good in whatever I was cooking, I also realized it was still ‘down in the garden’. Consequently, I just didn’t use it. So, this year, I asked my personal gardener (Mr. Bob) if we could move the herbs into pots at the back door; and, sure enough, there they are – chives, basil, mint (new for me this year), dill and flat-leaf parsley. They seem very happy to have joined Mr. Bear at our back door, and I love picking a sprig of parsley off as we head out on a journey. It’s true that anyone with a little sunshine can garden, we just have to think of ‘pot gardening’…hm, well, ok, container gardening.  :-)

One of the things I love about a summer sky is the contrails made by jets that fly in the sky. The other morning, as we sat on the swing, I noticed one in the sky. While I was looking at it, another jet crossed that contrail. As the trail sat in the atmosphere, it pulled apart and looked like a zipper. And then, another jet crossed both of them, making somewhat of the Z from Zorro. Yes, I took the photo…just for you. I hope that as we progress from spring into summer, you will make time as you ride in your car or sit in your yard to find the shapes in the clouds, to find the dinosaurs in the kudzu that climb poles, to reach back and find those pieces of your childhood that help all of us continue on looking for a little bit of fun.

Have you noticed how almost all of the Travelers Rest business community is embracing purple this spring for this year's Relay For Life? And have you been able to see the “purple polka-dot potty” as it’s made its way around town? When Debra Kramer at Mae's on Main instituted the idea of the traveling toilet, the thought was that no business would want a purple toilet with artificial flowers in its tank sitting in front of their business. However, Debra and April Morris at the The Wiggle Room Gallery, Studio & School made the toilet look so cute, EVERYONE wants it. One business kept it for three days!

When the purple potty lands (courtesy of Hunter Ballew at Upstate Hauling) at a location, they have to pay $10 to have it moved, but that business also gets to choose where it goes next. This has really been a fun time in our community, and it’s been interesting to see my clients reactions to all this purple. One person came into the salon and wondered, “Does all of Travelers Rest celebrate Lent?”

The Travelers Rest area Relay will be held on April 20 this year, and it will be on the ball field at the former TR High School (on the corner of Wilhelm-Winter and Old Buncombe). The time is from 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. We give up a night's rest because “cancer never sleeps”.

Have you seen the new K-9 officer Stoki? I haven’t met him yet, but he’s already been busy with his officer, Donnie Widmer. He’s been chasing purse snatchers and finding drugs. His training seems to be going well. Remember, when the weather turns good, the bad guys come out at all times of the day and night. And we’re fortunate that we have men and women willing to meet the need of protecting our community while we rest in our homes. So, when you say your prayers, how about remembering our Travelers Rest Police Department. The dispatchers sit patiently waiting to receive your call for help. And our officers travel the town, looking to make sure all is well, and always willing and ready to answer your need.