The Daily: 24 January 24

I like days that have symmetry. Doesn’t mean a thing, but it makes my goofy brain happy…

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My birthday is this week. It’s supposed to be rainy and just above freezing. Maybe just below freezing. Either way, there are winter weather warnings for the next three days. This seems an excellent excuse to bake. I don’t love cake, but who doesn’t smile at birthday candles! So I am thinking muffins. Perhaps lemon ginger. Maybe with lavender. Almost certainly with a ridiculous number of candles set on fire on top.

I never tire of baking. Breads, scones, pies, biscuits, muffins, cookies. Give me a few cups of flour and a few hours and I will merrily spend them in the kitchen. And when the weather is cold — as it almost always is on my birthday — baking is the surest way to delicious warmth. I always look forward to baking day. And the best thing about baking is having yummy baked things to share with friends.

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Wednesday Word

for 24 January 2024

den

You can respond in the comments below or go visit the All Poetry contest for January. Your response can be anything made from words. I love poetry, but anything can be poetic and you needn’t even be limited to poetics. An observation, a story, a thought. Might even be an image — however, I am not a visual person, so it has to work harder to convey meaning. In the spirit of word prompts, it’s best if you use the word; but I’m not even a stickler about that. Especially if you can convey the meaning without ever touching the word.

If responding on All Poetry, you are limited to the forms of that medium, though my contests are fairly open as to form. However, if you have something long, post it in the comments below. That said, please don’t go too long. Keep it under 2000 words. I’m not going to count, but I’m also not promising to read a novel.

Unless it’s really good!

If you have nothing to say, that’s fine. I know you all are busy and distracted. But if you’ve read this far, then I’ve made you think about… den.

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The Wolf Moon is full tomorrow at 12:54pm. Since this full moon is normally the closest one to my birthday, I feel like this is my lunar time of the year. This is my moon. Maybe it is understandable that I also feel especially drawn to wolves. Everything about the wolf just fascinates me. But there is one thing in particular — the idea that wolves domesticated humans. I don’t even remember where I first encountered this. Maybe Temple Grandin? But now it is a common notion in anthropology and social psychology. And it makes far more sense to see the symbiotic relationship between humans and canines from this perspective than from the older story about man taming the wolf and creating a dog.

The key bit of evidence is the den. Humans are apes, a family of creatures that don’t put much effort into maintaining a family home. However, wolves do. Wolves have strong bonds both among family members and between the family and the lands they inhabit. Wolves know how to make a comfortable den; they are very hygge. Wolves create home. And they brought this almost unique social arrangement to humans.

Wolves were the very definition of successful social relationships. Of course, humans would want to emulate their rich, graceful lives. And both wolves and their doggy descendants are amazingly empathetic beings. They care about everything and try to make everything better for everyone. Of course, wolves would want to nurture this poor naked ape with the clever fingers. It seems logical that wolves adopted humans as a pet project. Humans had their own tricks, but I’m fairly sure we learned the way home from wolves.

This is probably just another fairy tale, or maybe a Just So Story. But it’s one that makes sense of the things we know of ourselves, of wolves, and of home-making. So I like this story, and I feel particularly drawn to it at this time of year. This is when humans and canines alike want to curl up in the warmth of family and den down while the weather howls beyond the door.

I suspect if wolves had opposable thumbs there would be candles and muffins on a cold winter’s night…

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©Elizabeth Anker 2024