By David Fortier 

Come Sunday morning, Mary will have started working a bit in the yard, but the weather is still not ideal—better but not what one might expect this time of year. She is thinking about the phlox, a decorative plant with tiny petals of varying colors that is on the corner of the house, southeast side, under the cedar and rhododendron. Well, that’s not all she has on her mind, regarding the yard, but it is a place to start. 

My role, when it comes to the yard, is to mow the lawn regularly (when I don’t Mary picks up the slack), to rake up and bag leaves and to attend to various other duties upon request. A favorite is to prune the apple tree, which I am wondering about, since I have had the knee replacement.

The new knee is doing fine, and while I wouldn’t say it is 100 percent, it’s pretty close. I don’t know if I am being smart about this, but I did go out and buy a basketball the other day, and twice I took the ball down to the school parking lot to shoot hoops.  

I took things slowly but wouldn’t let myself leave until I hit 10 consecutive shots, 10 straight with each hand. The shots were from five feet out, nothing too impressive. To qualify, I will not be joining any pickup games anytime, or ever. I just like the feeling of the ball easing through the net. 

Time is not something to take lightly. So, when I decide to shoot some hoops, go for a walk, sit down and write this column, comment on student work, have a chat, I do it with some thought. It’s something that I picked up during our experience with COVID.

To get up and go out, I stopped to ask myself whether it was necessary. I started to ask this about other situations, too. And I have begun to do when I feel aggrieved. Is this something to get upset about?

***

Of course, Ukraine is not far from my mind. What people are facing there—and other places throughout the globe—is unfathomable and yet it is happening. These people, in their situation, make decisions that deal directly with life and death; on a deeper level, many have chosen, given the situation, to live in the face of death each and every day. 

***

With Easter behind us—yes, we had a wonderful gathering with all the kids and with the kids of the kids, including a Easter egg hunt, terrific meal of baked ham, au gratin potatoes, fancy strawberry feta cheese infused salad and green beans almondine, and of course Jay’s Italian Ricotta cookies. And there was plenty more with appetizers and such. 

***

This week’s reading/listening recommendation is two-fold. April is National Poetry Month. Check out the podcast, “Poetry Unbound,” featuring the Irish poet Padraig O Tuama, who reads contemporary poems and then talks about what they mean to him. A favorite is the poem, “Walking with my Delaware Grandfather” by Denise Low. Click here to listen. 

Another recommendation is “A Handy Guide to How the Supreme Court Works,” from the podcast “On the Media.” The guide has been around for a while, so it features the court of the recent past rather than the current court. Click here to listen.  

Have a good week. 

“Come Sunday morning” is intended to be a weekly review, a recounting of the past week and an anticipation of week to come. Among its features will be reviews of old and new books, sharing of favorite podcasts, some family news, Bristol events and happenings and issues surrounding education, work and community journalism. He can be reached at dfortier@bristoledition.org. 

Support our local news initiative

TBE is dedicated to covering local news. With your help, we can hire reporters to cover local government, our schools and businesses. Support TBE with a small recurring monthly membership. Click the Membership button at the top of our homepage. Here is the link: https://www.bristoledition.org/. For more information, read this.