“The sky is higher than a tree I know.

I know it’s higher than an airplane

But when at night there is a starry sky —

I wonder which is higher

Stars or sky?”

~ Carson McCullers, “How High is the Sky” from Sweet as a Pickle and Clean as a Pig

This evening, I cooked up a batch of River Dog Special Chow: which involves kale, carrots/sweet potatoes, olive oil, oatmeal and such for a Good Dog that needs to stick around with me a while longer.

His last vet visit was a complete turn-around from the one where he was diagnosed with stage 4 kidney disease. Now I realize there’s not a cure, but last November, I came home with River from the vet’s office determined to do anything to make a difference.

You’re never willing to give up easily on your best friend.

So, over the past year, he’s had holistic medicine, home-cooked meals involving a lot of kale and oatmeal, plus other veggies, and a lot of love. My boy regained his lost weight — which in his case, has been a blessing (note, I didn’t say anything about me on that subject).

Today, he had a bath, and as I gently scrubbed and suds-ed up that silly boy, I smooched on that sweet-round furry noggin and thanked him for staying a little bit longer. Out to the sunshine he went to dry after a towel rub and snout smooch.

Back when my son was a baby, I bathed him pretty much the same way I bath River: big sink, play time in soapy warm water, and a big smooch along with fluffy towel drying. Some things just never change, do they?

• Saluda Tailgate Market is open from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. on Fridays at the city parking lot off Main Street.

• Saluda Welcome Table is every Tuesday: dinner is served from 5:30 to 6:45 p.m. in the fellowship hall of Saluda United Methodist Church. All are welcome; donations accepted.

• Saluda Community Land Trust’s next Walk in the Woods will be Sunday to Old Cove Road; meet at Saluda Library parking lot at 2 p.m. for carpool. Contact “Trail Boss” Chuck Hearon for hike information at 828-817-0364 or chearon@skyrunner.net. You can reach SCLT at 828-749-1560 or saludasclt.org.

• Saluda Historic Depot is located at 32 W. Main St. Saluda Train Tales are held at 7 p.m. on the third Friday each month through October; the next one is Friday night with Laura Fields, who will present a program about minerals of North Carolina.

• The Saluda Historic Depot Theatre Troupe is producing Saluda’s first musical, to premiere at 7 p.m. on Nov. 17 at The Party Place & Event Center, 221 Friendship Church Road, Saluda. For information, contact Judy Ward at 828-674-5958/judyward@charter.net or Corinne Gerwe at cgerwe@rsnet.org/828-749-4803.

• Saluda Center potluck and bingo is at 6 p.m. Oct. 29. This fall, don’t forget to visit the Thrift Barn, located behind the center which is run by volunteers: all proceeds benefit Saluda Center.

• Don’t forget to save specially marked hot-pink box tops for Saluda School. Each one is worth 10 cents; money raised is used to purchase books for the Books Are Really Fun program.

• Happy October Birthday to Cissy Thompson, Riley Thompson, Patricia Case, Gary Corn, Aaron Bradley, Amanda Anderson, Lisa Orr, Marilyn Prudhomme, Bubba Dawson, Kirby Jackson, Mary Ann Asbill, Sheila Billeter, Carol Thompson, Mildred Hipp, Dean Bradley, Susan Wheeler and Brenda Craig.

Thank you for reading this column; as ever, the goal is to make you feel like you’re enjoying small town life in a friendly mountain town called Saluda. Feel free to contact me at bbardos@gmail.com, 828-749-1153 or visit bonniebardosart.com.