06/02/2026
FROM OUR BLOG - The Dirt: What Are You Doing Here?
I was caught by surprise when my son stepped out of the house and into the backyard.
I was expecting my wife.
She’d been gone for a couple of days, traveling for work, and she was due to be home at any time. I was expecting her. I was hanging out with some friends in the backyard when she got home. With all the fancy new apps we have on our phones, I could tell the garage door had just opened and closed. So, I wasn’t surprised to see her when she came out the back door...happy...but not surprised. But right behind her came Cooper.
I had to do a double-take!
He’s a traveling nurse, and for the last 6 months, he’s been working in San Francisco. Earlier this spring, there were plans being made for a visit back home, but unfortunately, plans changed. Things weren’t lining up the way he had hoped, so the visit home got cancelled...at least, that’s what I was led to believe.
Unbeknownst to me, he and my wife had been secretly working on new plans for a return visit home, and they thought it would be fun to keep me in the dark and make it a surprise.
It was!
And a great one at that!
Now that the kids are all grown up and on their own, having them back at home is a lot different...and in a good way. Parents of older children probably get that.
Anyway, Cooper hung out with us for a few days, we got some time to catch up, and I got to enjoy a very unexpected, but very pleasant surprise. Those are nice once in a while.
And speaking of pleasant surprises...
Spring marches on, and along with it come a whole host of small, pleasant surprises if you’re willing to take the time to enjoy them. New growth and new flowers are everywhere, all you have to do is take the time to discover them...along the roadside, in the prairie, in the timber...and hopefully in your garden too.
If not, maybe it’s time to do something about that. We can help.
—Cameron Reese
