Calvin Chambers said, “Things will not always go as planned, but even the unplanned can be beautiful.” Of course, we had planned for a mild January with a little warm rain every now and then. Instead, we are being dazzled as the sun catches and bedazzles the one drop falling from the crystalline icicle drooping from the roof. Then we ponder the number of Purple Finches at the feeder with the many Cardinals and observe that the Blue Jay and the Red Bellied Woodpecker are not friendly with each other. Before it all melts, we will marvel at February’s full moon lighting up the deep snow still lingering. This is not what we planned, but it is beautiful.

Some planned activity of making an inventory of their canned goods and dealing with all those empty fruit jars has some Old Champions grateful for the bounty of past gardens and hopeful for the growing season ahead. Edie over at the L and E Organic Farm said, “Might be lots of snow outside, but that means get dirty inside! Potting up for cold frame planting!” She is ahead of her Champion friends who have lots to learn from her.

Sandra Powell will have a birthday on February 13th. Her mother, Eva Powell, gave us a good tip about dealing with dogs that want to aggressively chase your rig out our country lanes. Her tip was to just slow down, way down. The dogs get bored and lay down in the shade. The 13th is also the day Claire Shannon celebrates. In times past she was a violin student and performed in “The Nutcracker.” Imagine having your birthday on Valentines’ Day. Shelby Ward can claim that distinction. We hope you are all well celebrated and appreciated for yourselves and for the parts you play in the lives of your friends and families.

What is the best idea for a Valentine gift? Candy and flowers can hit the spot, but so can lots of other things. They say a man who can cook is adorable, but the man who will wash dishes is irresistible. “I love you for a hundred thousand reasons, but most of all I love you ‘cause you’re you.” Jim Reeves put those beautiful words into music. Music as a purveyor of romance can hardly be beat. So, sing to each other. You know your song.

The General was unusually brief in his announcement that the Vanzant Jam was a ‘go’ for Thursday the 5th with hardly any superfluous information except that part where he talked about having been isolated, presumably due to the inclement weather, during which time he “made some cupcake size pot pies using hummingbird livers and gizzards using the recipe my cousin from Cross Timbers, MO gave me. They were delicious. Thanks J.c.” It turns out that The General is kin to any number of Champions, most of whom are happy to see him coming. Cousin J.c. Owsley plans to be back in these parts one of these days to buy his copy of Kaitlyn McConnell’s “The Ozarks Pie Project Diary” at the Champion Store. One time, a few years back, around 2016, he visited Champion riding a big white mule named Dot, an animal borrowed from a friend. He shared a story: “An old friend of mine once raffled off a dead horse and I asked him if it made anyone mad. He said, ‘only the guy who won, so I just gave him back his money.’” J.c. likely has many yarns to spin around the old stove, and his Champion friends will always be glad to see him coming.

Leo Buscaglia said, “Be careful about giving advice, for wise men don’t need it, fools won’t heed it, and you’ll wind up talking to yourself.” That sounds like some of the lyrics that singer, songwriter Jesse Welles from Ozark, Arkansas might write. When asked about how he felt about being nominated for a Grammy Award for his music he said that he had an innate feeling of a duty to be optimistic and to have faith in the future. He thinks it is the duty of artists not to grow cynical. He sounds like a Champion—Looking on the Bright Side!

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