the Kat's Kradle

According to Ecclesiastes chapter 3, verse 3, "there is a time to heal".
For a long time my family has suffered from divisions. Perhaps there were misunderstandings. It is no matter. Yesterday everyone who could, joined together for a shared meal. Our oldest member, Murrium, aged 88 this year, and our youngest, Alana, aged 3. We shared chat, and games for the first time since I joined this family. And this afternoon, my grandchildren (Murrium's great grandchildren) called upon me to sing Jack and Jill so that they could play rolling down the hill in front of Murrium's home.
If there is pain in my heart that I was once alienated from my own son, there is joy that I can play such an important part for my grandchildren now. There are even those in the family who call me their Pied Piper!
X:74
T:Jack and Jill              % title
C:English traditional        % composer
R:Nursery Rhyme
O:                           % origin.
M:2/2                        % meter
L:1/4                        % length of shortest note
Q:240                        % tempo
K:G                          % key
V:1                          % voice 1
D>D D>D | E>E E>E | F>G (3AGF | F2 E z |
w:1.Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail_ of wa-ter.
w:2.Up Jack got and home did trot as fast as he_ could ca-per,
A>F F>F | G>E E>E | (3FGF (3EDE | D2 D2 |]
w:Jack fell down and broke his crown and Jill_ came tum-b-ling af-ter!
w:He~went to bed to mend his head with vi-ne-gar and_ brown pa-per.


Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me

We have a small tribe of cats (14 more or less, most of the time), so when I went out into the garage yesterday I wasn't too surprised to find the mortal remains of a squirrel. Naturally, being a tidy-minded (i.e. anal-retentive) soul, I picked it up and put it in the ... well, let's just say I laid it to rest.
Today, on hearing my account of my carrying out of yesterday's sanitary duties, my beloved expressed concern that the squirrel

• could have had rabies, and
• might have infected me!

I should hie me to the ER immediately. But what to tell the doctor on duty? That I was bitten by a dead squirrel?

Yesterday was a 100% Grannying day. My partner was sick all night, which rather upset our plans to set up for a yardsale/fleamarket at a local venue, so I had help from various members of my family to get our tables set up, then my daughter's boyfriend stayed with me to receive most of the customers for the day.
After the yardsale packed up we went home and while my two daughters sorted through their treasure-trove of newly-acquired clothing I played with the grandchildren.
My grandson decided he wanted a policeman's hat, so that he could be a policeman and shoot monsters! Fortunately I was raised in a tradition of quick improvisations, and always keep a few empty cereal packets handy for just such an emergency. Twenty minutes later, the newest member of the local police force was inducted into the Special Division: Monster Containment Unit.
Now I have to make a monster for him to shoot!