Abby and I spent the day in her hometown, Ryan, Oklahoma, today. As we sometimes do, we bought chicken and side dishes at KFC in Duncan, 35 miles away, and brought it for the family. We gathered at the home of Abby’s father’s widow Ethel, who is always glad to see us.

As the day progressed, we were inundated by a fierce wind storm, and the dust in the air reminded me of late winter or early spring days growing up in Lawton, Oklahoma, 70 miles to the northwest.

It was quite cold and still yesterday, and quite warm and windy today, and when the weather changes harshly like this, it seems to make Abby’s rheumatoid disease flare. I would like to read up on the effects of weather changes on arthritis sufferers, though as it stands now, I can tell you that it is a very real occurrence.

By late afternoon we rummaged through some of Abby’s father’s things in the old barn, including some tools he used to create custom engraving on firearms he made. Finding it brought tears to Abby.

We got home after dark, with dust in our hair.