Samwise Injures His Leg

The air is cold and heavy with the expectation of a snowstorm that will begin this afternoon and carry on through Sunday morning. We’re just back from the pond, where the frozen brown, hardscrabble landscape is begging for a blanket of white.

We’re happily tucked back into comfort while I nurse the anticipation of leaving home for five months. Hopefully, it will carry much less drama than we’ve experienced the past four weeks. First came my bedridden gout, which had me off my feet for two weeks and stiff-ankled for another two. Thankfully, my left foot is normal again, while the right continues to inch toward normalcy.

The moment after I pushed the “send” button on my last blog post two days ago, I stood up to go to the post office. Emily bounced right up, but Samwise struggled and could not put weight on his rear left leg. He’d tweaked it somehow during the morning stroll, but I did not think anything of it. But it was now concerning, for I’d never seen him favor a limb like this.

We…