The first time my brother put the boys in the boat and took them out on a real lake , he brought the two complaining kids back an hour later and told them they needed to learn the difference between fishing and fish catching . Their great-grandpa fed the fish at 5 p . m . daily .
From the river , I want to go see some friends . Any warrior from any battlefield will agree to one source of sustenance , the relationships we form along the way with the folks with whom we have been in the trenches . I cannot compare my experiences with the Veterans of foreign wars I have met along the road to abolishing cannabis prohibition , but the drug wars are wars ; the enemy is greed , and greed kills people . Some of them have been my people .
I could take my husband ’ s remaining ashes up to the Continental Divide in Colorado and sprinkle them at the top of the mountain where we went on our honeymoon and took all three of our kids on a family vacation straight from hell . Those are really the best and most memorable vacations , the ones where you left for a 10-day camping trip to Yellowstone , and it rained seven out of 10 days ! And mom ran over a skunk causing a roadside evacuation .
I would be close enough to Oregon to go see Elvy Musikke , an 80-year-old activist we all owe a debt to and someone I am grateful to call my friend .
I will breathe . I will be grateful . I will grieve for a minute because NONE of this had to happen , which is always the case with the devil ’ s spawn , greed . The devil is real . I refuse to give the force gender , nor will I capitalize it , but greed is how it propagates its species . I am fighting that devil from now on with Bugs Bunny joy .
My goal is to laugh like Waxy Brown , Tim and the crew , and Big V and his crew . Thanks , fellas , for all the joy and laughter you brought to April Hatch , RN , and me bringing in Patients Out of Time . You boys are welcome to come fishing with April and me as long as you agree to the no hook rule !
Anyway , that ’ s how I will spend my summer vacation when cannabis comes off the Federal Schedule .
Celebrating our victories !! Plan your celebration now !
Dolores Montgomery Halbin , RN , BSN , and Ordained Nurse Minister , resides in SW Missouri . After her husband passed in 2015 , she retired from nursing . She worked with the 2014-2018 Missouri campaigns for legalized medical marijuana . She continues as a cannabis reform activist volunteering with Canna Convict Project and working toward Federal decriminalization through educational speaking and freelance journalism . Dolores Halbin ,
doloreshalbin @ gmail . com .