Dear Reader:

What a year we have had with ever-changing bizarre weather patterns! It used to be the weather segment part of news stations was squeezed in right before sports and after headline news. These days, unfortunately, the weather IS the headline news.

Take for instance… the difference in two of my children’s family spring break vacations. Walsh and Mollie are in Florida with friends and Sunday and Monday… it was in the fifties with dark skies… though, hopefully, it is supposed to improve gradually throughout the week working up to mid-seventies. Still, it will be cooler there now than Charleston. ( high 70’s and low 80’s)

John, Mandy and the kids flew out yesterday for Washington, D.C. -while showing the children all the sights… the temperature will be in the mid-eighties! No one can escape elevator weather anymore… illogical at best.

BBC Radio held a contest for folklore and mythical stories about Earth in relationship to the Sun and Moon … and how they came to be. I read and listened to several tales and narratives from different nationalities and Native-American tribes … but when I read one anecdote ( by Cassie Beggs) she had added another important element to her story-an important element that has ravaged destruction, lately, more than any other … wind!

***The story was rather long… so this is a synopsis…” The Sun and the Moon.”

A long time ago, the Sun and the Moon walked the Earth, living among the humans as equals. Without their light, the Earth turned peacefully beneath the light of the stars.

The humans were watched over by two guardians-the first was mysterious and beautiful with white, silvery hair, blue glowing eyes and skin paler than milk- she was called the Moon.

The second guardian was handsome, strong and his laughter made flowers bloom while his glorious smile covered the world in bright light. He was the Sun. Despite their differences the sun and moon were close friends and respected each other.

The humans loved them but took little notice of one other force that shared the land… the Wind… who was very jealous of the humans’ love for the Sun and Moon when he got no attention.

Spiteful and vicious he decided to spread lies about both of them and divide the humans’ loyalty to each … instead turning on each other.

So he sent both the Sun and Moon on a ” fool’s errand” to the North… while he spread his lies.

The Wind would slip under doors and through cracks in windows spreading poisonous lies and turning humans against each other. By the time the Sun and Moon returned the world was in turmoil! No one would listen to reason.

The Sun and Moon pulled together to punish the Wind for his wicked scheming! They took the Wind’s ability to speak away… since his speech was filled with lies… now all he could do was howl at the sky for the rest of time.

The Sun and Moon promised the humans that from now on… they were a team and would never leave them unguarded again -the Sun would take the first twelve hours as the sun rose and would call his protective guard time DAY… while the Moon would shine with the stars and call her guardianship NIGHT!

From that time on… together they have watched over humans in peace and harmony!

*** I thought since it has been the Wind that is still causing so much destruction and death… (even without speaking) and that its howls will probably be cemented in many people’s memories forever… that this story was quite timely!

Wind is my biggest enemy too since it plays havoc in a garden in more ways than one! Particularly a colorful planter garden!

So until tomorrow…

Just heard back from my ” Ace” reporter checking in from Washington-today her favorite pick of the day was the private Capitol Tour-the rest of the family agreed too-Eva Cate got to see the Helen Keller monument-dad John is from Alabama!

Today is my favorite day! Winnie the Pooh