There’s a winter chill in the air! I can hear all the hunters rejoicing and wimps like me saying oh no not winter! We’ve all been talking about how fast this year has gone. I find it hard to believe Christmas is just a little over a month away!

I trotted over to San Antonio. I regret to say I didn’t have time to go by and visit George Hill. My grandkids kept me busy with soccer games, soccer parties and of course the big evening dinner.

My son Scott and his wife Heather ran their first half marathon. They, along with Heather’s sister Carissa; her fiancé Ryan, and co-worker Erica, were all first time distance runners. I have to say I enjoyed listening to all the planning and worrying over the race. I’m impressed that any child of mine could find that talent within their gene pool. Russ and I are both athletic, that verb should be were, but neither of us would think about running a long distance.

Scott ran a personal best, 2 hours and 16 minutes for 13 miles! Heather also ran a personal best; she and the girls came in just under 3 hours. I can’t even think about it without getting painful twinges. They were all pretty exhausted when they came in but I think it was that sense of accomplishment that struck me the most. They had all set new mileposts for themselves and they exuded an inner sense of self-confidence.

It is always wonderful when a person reaches what seems to be an impossible goal. They are all set to run the next race in Austin. I will not be joining them. I can see my goal in life is to stay with the children!

It was good to be back in the land of peaceful roads! I can feel myself tense up when I look ahead and there are miles of cars moving at a snail’s pace! Still, I know all you grandparents out there will feel as I feel. That little piece of joy comes running up and says “I’ve missed you Granny,” and all is well on earth!

I was reading through a newsletter that came in the mail this evening. They were giving historical evidence for Thanksgiving Day. It was rather timely, because we are discussing this in Social Studies.

The Pilgrims and Governor William Bradford were the first people to try the system called Communism, and discover that it doesn’t work. When he changed his way of working, and gave every family their own land, and charged them to make their own way, the result was amazing.

They went from three years of starvation and famine, to decades of surplus. Everyone went to work willingly when they knew it was benefitting their family. The ideal of individual freedom was the basis of our success. This ideal nurtured our country’s journey to statehood. We need to stop and remember the valuable lessons they left for us.

I understand that Britain has removed the Holocaust from their textbooks because it is offensive to the Muslim community, which does not acknowledge this historical event. Iran’s Prime Minister made that clear in his visit to the United States. General Eisenhower foresaw this, and made sure that many films were taken of the horror of the German camps. “Ike” made the local citizens come to the camps, and bury the dead. He made sure this “non event” was well documented.

The dream run ended for the Coyotes on Friday. One game does not remove your championship spirit, it only makes it stronger. Most of us won’t know what to do with ourselves now that our season is over. It just means we will be better fans next year, and our team will be a little hungrier. We still have the best coaches and best players; look everyone; we’re coming back!

The Lady Coyotes won another basketball game. It seems their season is getting off to a great start. Way to go ladies and good luck this season. I don’t know if anyone pays attention, but our cheerleaders have been coming up with some great routines. They put in hours of tough practice. I can hear some of you out there snickering, but cheerleading is a sport just like basketball or tennis. It requires teamwork, practice, dedication and strength.

You can also add to that list a few more requirements. Cheerleaders must be in the band, and they have to attend practice for their other sports, as well as UIL. That’s a hefty list of must dos!

My hat is off to Kathy Brockman, sponsor to the girls. Her schedule is horrendous and I don’t envy her one little bit. When you have a moment, give them a big thank you and hurray for the band!

I sincerely hope you have a wonderful week. We need to get serious about praying for rain, our land is parched. I guess the bottom line is we need to pray for our wonderful country. Please include our precious troops, our President and our President to be. May God give our lawmakers a large dose of common sense before they bankrupt our country. Hug your kids and smile at your neighbor. Life is too short for black looks and ugly days.