Mother's Day.

Mother's Day in this part of the world is May 10 -- no matter which day of the week it falls on. And -- surprise! -- it starts at exactly midnight. With artillery. At least that's how it sounded to us. The first three or four blasts incorporated themselves into my dream, but then I woke up. I think I counted more than twenty . . . explosions. Fireworks? Whatever.

Then I heard some wonderful singing -- four part harmonies. I thought, "that's not some drunk." Then I fell back to sleep.

We learned that the tradition is to wake Mom up in the middle of the night with a professional serenade! Isn't that thoughtful?

Everywhere we went today there were flowers for sale -- and women walking down the street carrying bouquets.

We spent the day in Guadalajara looking for a couple of necessities -- and ending up with a lot of stuff. How does that happen? Shopping in ninety-plus degree heat must make us a little loco. All I can say is that it's good to be home.

Happy Mother's Day, Mom! If I had a gun, I'd shoot it off in your honor. But knowing how you feel about guns, I imagine you are more honored by the fact that I've never even held a gun, much less shot one.