Serve by Design

Arizona is home to the Mighty Saguaro Cactus. I enjoyed their splendor in the Saguaro National Park of Tucson. I’ve also seen thousands of giant saguaros dotting the landscape of the Sonoran Desert while driving Interstate 8 along the southern border of the state. It is only appropriate that the Grand Canyon State should designate the Cactus Wren as their state bird and make the Saguaro Cactus Flower the state flower. Arizonans are immensely proud of their cacti heritage! Credit: gettyimages.com There are several reasons why the saguaro cactus is so admired. It is stately in size and stands as the tallest cactus in the United States. Although it may take ten years to grow one inch, the average height for a saguaro is over forty feet. Biologists say they only begin to spread their branches or iconic arms after 95 to 100 years and this variety of cacti are not even considered mature until after 125 years! Further, the waxy and thick outer skin of the saguaros protects them from excessi

Many of us are fascinated with roadrunners. They are an entertaining species of the cuckoo family of birds. I have seen them in New Mexico and Texas. Of course, my first encounter was on television during the Saturday morning cartoons of my childhood. Who could forget all the ridiculously funny exploits and repeatedly failed attempts of Wile E. Coyote to capture Road Runner? These Loony Tunes cartoon characters were created by Chuck Jones for Warner Brothers in 1949. I can still hear Road Runners’ signature and irritating car horn sound tormenting Coyote with a rapid-fire “Beep! Beep!” as he speeds away in each episode! On the Prowl in Texas! A roadrunner is capable of limited flight. I have seen these birds in action and to me it looks more like a leap or hop than actual flying though. Most of their movement is usually on the ground running where they can scoot along at speeds of 15-20 mph. Their food source includes insects, lizards, snakes, and small mammals. Using their pointed bea

“You have been summoned.” Many of us would feel a little unsettled to receive such a notice! That’s what Monique felt recently when she received her juror questionnaire. She wondered immediately, “How did they get my name?” Without doing my homework, I quickly answered, “From your voter registration.” That would end up being a partial answer. In Illinois, potential jurors are randomly selected from a master list of those holding a voter registration card, a driver’s license, or an ID card. When jurors have been qualified by the jury commissioners, then they are randomly selected to receive a juror summons. Image: istockphoto.com iStock Credit: bubaone Monique did everything she could to explain her situation on the initial questionnaire she received. She mentioned that she is a regular (and to listen to her principal, an indispensable!) substitute teacher, unfamiliar with the Sangamon Court House complex, and that she gets a little anxious in new settings. Evidently, the jury commissio

On Saturday, October 14, 2023, 10:36 am, a spectacular event occurred that could only be observed in parts of the western United States, as well as Central and South America. Weeks in advance of the annular solar eclipse, I was reading and hearing about it on the news. I knew that we were going to be visiting our family during this exact time. I just didn’t realize, at the time of first hearing about this, just how unique it all would be! We quite literally were in the “right place at the right time!” The zenith point for optimal viewing of this epic eclipse was Albuquerque, New Mexico! Looking upward with our "stylish" eclipse glasses! We took it all in so easily as we stood in our daughter’s kitchen in the suburb of nearby Rio Rancho and looked out over the Sandia Mountains to the east. It was like we were standing in a private celestial theater. What made this solar eclipse so unusual was that it happened when the moon orbited at its farthest point from earth. As it passed

“The sincerest form of flattery is imitation!” This observation is widely credited to Oscar Wilde, the popular 19 th century poet and playwright. However, there are similar but sarcastic statements that date a hundred years earlier such as: “Imitation is kind of artless flattery” or “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery that mediocrity can pay to greatness.” I prefer the Wilde expression over the other two for sure! My Mini-Me! I have known for a long time that children watch adults in their lives and often mimic their behavior. I did this when I was a child! I wanted to wear a ball cap, have a toothpick in my mouth and cover my hands with inexpensive brown Jersey gloves like my dad. I was surprised recently during a family visit to see that my six-year-old granddaughter, Klaire, was imitating me. When I am in a “crowd situation” at family gatherings I like to mark my glass when there are so many drinking glasses it is nearly impossible to keep track of who’s glass belongs

Whenever we visit our daughter and her family in New Mexico, Monique and I have the additional delight of enjoying their two beautiful dogs as well. We first met their 5-year-old Mini Golden-Doodle, Sophie Grace, in 2018. She is an intelligent and intuitive mother hen. Sophie is well trained, obedient, and watches our reactions to anticipate our moods and desires. The one-year-old, Mocha Latte, a black and white, Shiatzu, is “learning the ropes.” He is the newest member of “Team Defrees” and is quite charming, playful, and energetic, but immature at times as he tags along behind Sophie. They make a most loving and entertaining duo! Sophie and Mocha under foot!💕 Since we don’t have a pet at home anymore because of the passing of our dear Cock-a-Poodle, Freddie, some years ago, it is definitely an adjustment for Monique and me to have to navigate around the house when these feisty canines are competing with us for the same space in the kitchen, family room and bedroom areas. It’s easy f