William Wordsworth may have “wandered lonely as a cloud” up Cold Springs Road behind the road grader that spread the daffodils along the fence row last fall. “Tossing their heads in sprightly dance,” they are lovely. It would be lovely if that big road implement would wander up past Miss B.D.’s Wolf Pen place and work on that mud hole/spring branch that just keeps getting more wallowed out. It is 1.3 miles south of 76 Highway and sure to muddy up your undercarriage and jar your teeth. Old Champions must go the long way around to enjoy the many other hosts of golden daffodils, “fluttering and dancing in the breeze.” Monday morning’s breeze was a gale.

World-wide wanderer, Kaitlyn McConnell, wandered into the Vanzant Jam the other night. She was just passing by and could not resist revisiting the spot where she learned about reincarnation. She signed some copies of her recent “Passport to the Ozarks Volume 2” and promised another stop in Champion after her trip to the French Rivera. Lorelai brought Molly to the jam, her 10 week old puppy, all cuddly, brown, and curly. Lorelai’s grandfather strummed a beautiful “Blessed Assurance” on his dulcimer in the key of G, which meant he used a capo, which meant that the device had to be examined for its uniqueness by various musicians in the circle. Said one, “I never saw anything like that in my life!” Sherry Bennett did not bring her eight Yorkie puppies to the jam, but she posted some adorable pictures of them online, looking for forever homes. They are registered cuties with papers and fuzzy little faces that will steal your heart. There are lots of sweet songs about dogs–“Old Shep,” “Old Rattler.” Doug Bean sings one about “Pearl.” It turns out there are lots of songs about possums too. Sherry has a whole CD full of them which she thinks she might put in her car just for the fun of it. The prominent Champion has a favorite one done by the Bar D Wranglers. Now that his tablet is no longer ‘kazaouzed,’ he was able to share the tune a number of times with Wednesday jammers. It might/might not catch on.

Heather Berg along with Skyline Archery coaches, Jana Barnes-Brixey and Melissa Willhite, remark that the improvement in the team over the season has been awesome. Watching them all grow has been fun. Seven qualified for the state competition this year. Conner Jonas, Jacob Brixey, and Elizabeth Hinote in both bullseye and 3D, and Alex Bradley, Joseph Hastings, Aidan Acree and Paige Jonas in 3D. Congratulations to all you hardworking archers. Concentration, discipline, and persistence pay off.

Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash

Skyline third grade students, Lotus Winter and Ryanne Harvey, have their birthdays on March 1st and 3rd. Skyline’s art teacher, Miss Drake, and baloney lover and backyard mandolin musician (who frets a lot) Dennis Shumate, also enjoy March 3rd for their birthdays. The 5th is for sixth grader Gabriel Castillo and Linda Heatherington, Champion bridge player, gardener, and KC Chief’s fan. Sue Murphy sings “Just Because” and “In the Gravel Yard” and many other great songs. Her birthday is on the 8th of March. Happy birthday to all of you Champions and friends of Champions. February 26th would have been the 91st birthday of Johnny Cash. He has been gone for 20 years now and is still missed.

It is a fact that the longer we live, the more people we know who have died. As our contemporaries and old timers slip away from us, we are awash in sadness, memory, and gratitude for the part they played in our lives. We are reminded to stay in touch with family and friends, to appreciate them while we still have each other. Many in the world are missing loved ones as wars and terrible natural disasters have millions displaced and homeless. While we have only gratitude for our own safety and well-being, our thoughts and best hopes go out to the very many in the world not so fortunate. Champion—Looking on the Bright Side!

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