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   This morning I find myself gathering wool. Does anyone beside myself use that phrase anymore. It's an old saying meaning to do nothing, just daydreaming or thinking about things. I read somewhere that in its' original meaning it meant to literally gather wool that had been caught on bushes or fencing from passing sheep. It would be collected and spun into yarn for clothing or whatever. I expect those folks would just stroll along looking for that wool, chatting with each other as they did so or just daydreaming as they went about their task. I can see parents telling their children to go gather the wool. Seems like a activity to keep the kids busy and be helpful at the same time. My own mother would find little chores for us kids to do for the same reason. Got us out of the house, out from underfoot as she would say, and something to do. Picking berries, gathering greens for Christmas decorations, gathering sticks and twigs for kindling wood for the fireplace. Mom always seemed to find something. Although I often complained about that, in retrospect it did give me a sense of accomplishment when it was done. Sometimes I was rewarded with a piece of candy or cake and sometimes just a thank you. 

 Nowadays gathering wool just means you aren't doing a thing. That's a bad thing. That's the lesson I learned. My grandmother would say, idle hands do the devils' work, and there is wisdom in that old adage. It is something we all would do well to remember. There are times when I'm just sitting here typing with idle hands! That's when I get into trouble and get blocked from using Facebook. Well, it would have been wiser if my hands were truly idle. Rather ironic when you think about that. And so now I'll be getting up from behind this computer and finding something a bit more useful to occupy my time. I'll continue to gather wool though, perhaps enough to make something out of it. Wasn't that always the hope? The lesson being, don't waste time on idle thoughts, action get results.