One of Life's Gifts

I can't not write about our family's latest adventure. It always amazes me how life brings you magical opportunities if you are open to receiving them.

My wife is an animal nut. She has a bleeding heart for animals that no one else wants (as evidenced by the array of critters in our home). I'm sure she gets some of this from her dad who, by the way, once drove from Arizona to California and back to adopt a dog he heard needed a home. Cathy works at a local vet clinic part-time and somehow heard about a family of 6 horses that had been pulled off of a truck headed for a Canadian slaughter house (www.freewebs.com/sixhorsessaved). She contacted Carole (the woman who saved the six horses) and volunteered to help fundraise (horses are expensive animals to keep). Their idea was to get celebrities to sign T-shirts and then sell them on their web site to raise funds for food, etc. So, having lived and worked in the Hollywood area for a bit, Cathy sent out shirts to celebrity-type folks she knew were animal lovers.

One afternoon, the phone rang. It was Priscilla Presley (yep, as in Elvis). She had signed and put one of Cathy's shirts back in the mail to us a few days before and the shirt and horse story got her to thinking. Elvis had loved horses. They had always been one of his favorite parts of Graceland. He would get up every morning and look out his bedroom window to see what was going on in the horse pasture. Horses, like people, age and die. Elvis bought horses for everyone he cared for and there was only one of those left; one having passed just a few months ago. Priscilla felt that horses were part of the fabric of Graceland and that there should always be horses there. She offered to adopt two of the six horses to Graceland.

This story is full of the drama, excitement and disappointment that make life real. One of the two horses (Max) left Maine one cold, wintry day. Eighteen hours later, the trip stopped in Virginia as Max had to be cared for. Standing for that length of time in a moving horse trailer was a bit much for him. So, he was stuck in Virginia trying to rest and get better but in the meantime, the horse carrier bailed and left Carole without any way of getting Max to Graceland.

Back to us. The plans had been made to announce Max as the newest family member of Graceland during Elvis' birthday celebration. We had booked plane fare, made hotel (we just had to stay at the Heartbreak Hotel!) and car arrangements. In fact, we were pretty much on our way the day the trailer stopped in Virginia for a veterinary exam. We arrived in Memphis with the knowledge that Max would probably not make it to Graceland for Elvis' birthday celebration.

To my knowledge, Priscilla had not been back to Graceland for Elvis' birthday celebration ever. So, this was a very special occasion indeed. According to what I have heard, there are two places no one ever gets to go in Graceland. The second floor of the Mansion is one place, the horse barn is the other. We were welcomed into the horse barn by the barn manager and her staff. It is very apparent that Max will be well taken care of and will be very happy in his new home. His stall is waiting and his name is even on the door to his stall.

For Elvis' birthday event, 10-20 (I'm unsure of the exact number) members of Elvis' Insiders, drawn at random, were invited to visit the barn with Priscilla. The event was videotaped, Priscilla shared some of her fondest memories of Elvis and of having horses. She also told the insiders about adopting both Max and Merlin to repopulate the Graceland stables. Merlin is Max's brother who will later be moved to Graceland when they and he are ready. Priscilla is a wonderful storyteller! It is apparent to me that her memories of Elvis and of those years of their life at Graceland are still very much alive within her. The details she shared were wonderful, full of love and conveyed much about life at Graceland and about the special place horses held in Elvis' heart.

I've never really been a huge fan of Elvis. I respect him for who he was and his impact on not only the music industry but on the people who love his music. I went to Graceland mostly to support my wife, her part in the story and to take care of our two kids (ages 4 & 6) while she did her thing. We felt we needed to go and to bring them as this was a "once in a lifetime" thing; ie. one of life's gift's that you sacrifice whatever you need to to go and experience. Yes, we paid our own way; flights, hotel, rental car, meals, etc. We did participate in a few events gratis (Thank You EPE!) but we were there to celebrate Max's adoption and arrival at Graceland. It was a bummer Max didn't make it on time but we celebrated none the less (he has subsequently arrived!).

Priscilla. Wow! What a wonderful, sweet, sincere, caring person she is! After the "barn event", she hung out with us for almost two hours. We enjoyed an absolutely delicious home-cooked buffet prepared by one of the barn staff's moms. Priscilla talked with the girls for a long time (Our sister-in-law Colleen came with us. Jackie, who's farm currently houses the other 4 horses from the family and her sister Sandy also make the trip). I didn't get much of a chance to chat as the kids and I were out playing and visiting with the other horses. When it was time to leave, we took a few pictures (we promised we would not post them). One will be on our next years Christmas card. Priscilla insisted on taking pictures with our kids. She picked them up and put them on Elvis' saddle (which was on a sawhorse) and stood with them for pictures.
How cool is that?

When we were there, I sort of took everything in stride. Every now and then, now that we are home, I get a little shiver when I realize what we experienced this past week. I smile a little smile and savor the memory of seeing my little ones, sitting in Elvis' saddle being hugged by Priscilla Presley. Thank you so much Priscilla for sharing yourself and your passion for life with us and our kids. Our meeting you has truly been "One of Life's Gifts".

A Winter to remember...

The snow fell before the ground froze this year. At this point, I don't really remember when we had our first snowfall. It's the beginning of January (08) and the snow has been on the ground for a while. It was a white Christmas. It may have been a white Thanksgiving. I do know that I have been cross-country skiing pretty much every day in wonderful powdery snow for forever. This is a rare treat!


This past week, the kids were home from school as it was the end of their Christmas/New Years break. It snowed twice this week. I had just cleared the driveway of about a foot of new snow with the tractor and the next day there was another foot of snow! I made a nice snow mountain for the kids and they've been enjoying the vertical drop (and subsequent youthful rush) to the hard, snowpacked driveway. They land with a thunk and slide into the snowbank on the opposite side laughing. I'm sure their plastic sleds will end up getting busted up but then that's what makes it so fun. They looks so cute (I despise this word!) in all their snow gear. We have one pink and one black marshmallow. The only skin you see are their faces, aglow with that winter blush, colored by the fresh Maine air and the excitement that comes with playing a dozen different ways in the snow.

This winter has brought with it a classic, timeless beauty. The pines and firs green boughs painted white with snow. Packed snowy roads that force you to drive slower and see winter's magnificence. Significant snow banks to catch you if you do slip while driving. Ten inches of snow, carefully balancing on top of rail fences and on the railing of our deck.



The hearty little chickadees that flit to and from our feeder for sunflower seeds. On the branches of the fir trees they sit all puffed up to keep warm and twitter to each other, probably about the weather.

I love to cross country ski. I hadn't done it in over 15 years as I was living in a place where it rained a bit. Last year, I bought new cross country skis and I went out once. There really wasn't much snow last winter. This year, I have been out most every day. On most occasions, I am skiing in wonderful powdery snow; the days and nights being cold enough to preserve the texture.

Sometimes, I follow deer footprints. At first, there were three of them wandering about and now I really only see one set of tracks. They paw down through the snow to nuzzle green grass and clover that I planted a year ago. They also know the one apple tree that holds it fruit through winter and dig through the snow looking for downed apples. The snow around the base of this tree is trampled with all the animal feet that visit. I regularly knock a few brown, shriveled apples off the tree with my skipole. The deer aren't the only ones to visit this apple tree. It's a regular watering hole for most of the animals that don't hibernate. I see tracks for Snowshoe Hare, Chipmunks and/or Squirrel too I think. The deep snow has made it difficult for lots of the critters to get food but they somehow manage. It's easier for the smaller ones as they can move across the surface of the snow or underneath it. The deer have a harder time postholing thorough over two feet of it. It amazes me that in the heart of winter, one tree can help support so much life, even as it sits deep asleep waiting for spring to arrive.

I marvel at the quiet that I hear sometimes. I like to listen. There's a skidder clearing somebodys trees in the distance or sometimes begins the hum of the milking machine at a close by dairy farm that tells me it's four o'clock and time to begin wrapping up my adventures before dark comes. I ski mostly in the afternoon. At times there is no noise. I am careful to stop and listen a few times so I can savor the quiet when it comes. How often do we hear complete silence? It is another rare treat. Cold winter air carries the sounds of activity. Just as easily, the snow can silence; especially falling snow. Millions of little flakes to absorb noise. If there is no wind, you can hear the flakes hit the ground. How cool is that?

Yep.... this IS a winter both to remember and to savor. How delicious!