Another 4th of July passed us by this past week and Ol’ Dutch let er’ slip by without nary a mention, which is bad on all accounts. So late, but not forgotten, I have to give credit to all the founding fathers who gave their lives, property, and fortunes so we could be free.

Miss Trixie reminded me today that this is the 10th anniversary of my starting to write for the Valley papers. Since that time, I became syndicated, and it allowed me to meet many good people — and a few not-so-good ones — across the country. It's been a wild ride sometimes as you have traveled along with Ol’ Dutch and Miss Trixie on all kinds of adventures from the headwaters of the Rio Grande river to the outlet of the same into the Gulf of Mexico. Not a few people have told me that “it seems like a lot longer” when I told them it was my 10th year.

I am sure that most of you have heard the old phrase, “No good deed goes unpunished.” You also know by now that Ol’ Dutch likes to include some background of the origin of such phrases here so that you, my readers, will have some intellectual-sounding fodder to bring up at the next social meeting you attend. So, I went to the source for everything, aka The Internet, and there seems to be some schism about who came up with such wisdom.

There may be a few readers who can remember the original game show Password invented by CBS Network in 1961. In its long multi-year run, it has called NBC and ABC home, as well, and continues today. For those of you who are not familiar with the game, it consists of two teams of two people. One of which is a well-known celebrity and the other one is chosen from a field of willing contestants.

This past week Ol’ Dutch celebrated another one of those pesky days that thankfully come along only once a year. Yep, you guessed it. Another birthday rolled around and right on past like a freight train off a washed-out bridge. And I see that most of you missed it as I didn't see you at the party nor did you send an appropriate gift to the house. Which I guess is my fault for not announcing the whole affair so you could come and honor so great a guest as me.

I know it will come as no surprise to my male readers out there just how important it is to have what is known as the “right answer” when dealing with partners of the female persuasion.

Miss Trixie and I have arrived back at our digs in Colorful Colorado safe and sound albeit not without some struggle. Of course, it's like that with most things in life and so a person can only keep moving forward and work through things as they come.

It's been a hectic week that included unpacking and setting up the household for the summer so far. Miss Trixie had to make her semi-monthly trip out to the Amish store to stock up on things she needed. We also got to visit the new Amish bakery and that's always a treat with their tasty homemade baked goods and other culinary delights.

Spring is perking right along and even though some recent pics of places like Yellowstone show a plethora of snow still on the ground, it won't be long now until the buffalo there will be head butting nosey, picture taking tourists once again.

It has been my honor to serve the San Luis Valley as a Director on the SLV Rural Electric Co-op Board for the past four years. Now it is time for the District 7 Director-at-Large election. Note that ballots will be mailed out to members on May 11.

It is that time of year again when Spring comes rushing into the Southern United States with a passion and leaves a person never knowing if you will need the furnace or the air conditioning on any given day. And having been down in those parts some ten or more years in a row, Ol’ Dutch knows that hot summer weather will find us faster than crap through the proverbial goose.

When I decided to become a counselor, I did not think I wanted to counsel children. I had previously worked at Tu Casa, Inc., with the Children’s Advocacy Center of the San Luis Valley (CAC) under its umbrella. Even though I did not work directly with the children at the CAC, I did occasionally work with the family in one way or another.

The Bunny came and went here without so much as a dyed egg as that tradition seems to have passed the way of all things messy for moms. Nowadays of course we have multicolored plastic eggs that can be filled with all sorts of things like candy and toys and even coins.

Spring has sprung down here in Texas where Ol’ Dutch and Miss Trixie spend our winters. In fact, it may have just sprung right past Spring and headed into an early summer as temperatures today are going to be North of 90 degrees. One thing you will find wherever you are on the Great Plains is that if you do not like the weather, you can wait 24 hours and it will usually change. And that can mean using the heater one day and air conditioning the next, which is what has occurred here where we are.

I am writing to you with a heavy heart. It has now been over a week since our community experienced a very tragic event. It was reported that the police took down and killed a “man” who charged at them with knives during a wellness check. An awful picture was published from the officer’s body cam portraying this individual as a monster.

We do not prevent child abuse by accepting it. We do not prevent it by being shy, embarrassed, or quiet about it. We prevent it by speaking out, asking questions, finding answers, and advocating for those who need us most, our kids. April is Child Abuse Prevention Month, and we need to talk about it. We need to talk about what is happening to kids in our communities and beyond. We need to talk about why some parents mistreat the ones they love the most. We need to talk about why we, as a community, must remain vigilant in protecting all our children.

I am not sure whoever conjured up the term “babysitting” when referring to the act of watching over someone else’s little rugrat but anyone that has done much of it can tell you there is not much of any “sitting” that goes on during that job. Those little rascals sensing some long sought after freedom from mommy soon turn into little hellions bent on the destruction of property and nerves alike in a lot of cases.

Child Abuse Prevention Month (CAPM) is a time to highlight the importance of individuals and communities working together to prevent child abuse. Our goal is to increase awareness about child abuse and neglect and to decrease it from occurring. In 2022, in the San Luis Valley, there were 1,035 child abuse reports made to the Colorado Department of Human Services.

Getting old is not for the faint of heart that is for certain. As we age things just naturally tend to wear out or just wear down from years of use and abuse. It seems like I get one thing on the mend and another injury or illness comes charging into my offensive line like the Packers into the Dallas Cowboys football team setting me back ten yards or so.

Last month I mentioned Zodiacal Light, but I never saw it even though I looked at Venus every night. March is predicted to be the best month to look for it, so this is the month I will tell you about it. Since the last quarter moon is on the 15th and the new moon is on the 21st, this is the perfect time to look for it and observe the entire sky.