There is a barred owl in the woods this afternoon. Its voice goes "Who cooks for you? Who cooks for you? Who cooks for you-aahl?

This morning the post master greeted me as I picked up my mail and bought a stamp. I didn't know he knew me but he wanted to talk about boxes and classes, learning to work wood. I had the same conversation this afternoon with the FedEx express driver who was delivering the last of my boxes being returned by Taunton Press from the upcoming article. There is something to working with wood that people get and get good when they have at least a chance. There is something about it that soothes the soul. This afternoon, I've been working on the second project for the new book... A rustic 5 board bench made from rough-sawn pine. There are rich textures in the wood, markings of a large circular saw, and this project is to be done in milk paints in two colors, a base coat and top coat, allowing the texture to be highlighted.

So, that owl. Its sound is much like the traditional Chinese folk greeting, "Nee How", which means "have you had your rice?"... A sign of deep concern for the basics of life. Can you see that an owl in the woods and a villager in remote China might know the same language and give voice to the same concerns? That they might understand one another?

You have to be somewhat involved in the outdoors to have a sense of reality, and the underlying values of life. Hang out too long in the artificial heat and cold and in your shelter from the elements, you can get your sense of reality twisted. Then when the voice calls from the woods, you may not know its meaning.