It's a rare free Memorial Day Weekend, usually filled with a favorite local annual event, the Virginia Fox Hound Show at Morven Park in Leesburg. I love this show. It's like stepping back in time, except for all the cameras and other digital devices recording memories in all five rings.

It's strange to know that Morven Park is relatively quiet, no sound of hound music – like a battle of the bands or choirs, hound-wise. During the show, hound packs reside in assigned kennels, able to see neighbors and hear each other, and often raise their voices in a joyful noise as complex as any symphony. Their exuberant melodies express joy and life. Already looking forward to next year's hound show.

Other local events near and dear to our hearts have been canceled and/or postponed. Upperville Horse Show canceled its early June fixture, followed by the Loudoun Benefit Show (June 10-14), but organizers are hoping to run both events in the fall. Check online frequently for news about your favorite sporting events and competitions, etc.

If given approval by state officials to run without spectators, Middleburg Spring Races will run June 13 at Glenwood Park and the Virginia Gold Cup Races on June 27 at Great Meadow. On May 6, the National Steeplechase Association contacted state officials, but no reply yet. Running the races for the sake of the horses themselves is important. Race fans are great, vital to the support of the sport, but horses are steeplechasing's very heart and soul.

Horses are athletes and they train to peak fitness for a specific contest and distance. They need to run and expend that incredible pent-up energy, which in a Thoroughbred can be considered the equine equivalent of rocket fuel. It's a great idea to hold these races for the sake of the horses and the sport. We certainly hope that state officials give both NSA meets the nod. With luck, there will be videos and live streaming.

For information: nationalsteeplechase.com - centralentryoffice.com - middleburgspringraces.com - virginiagoldcup.com

Recommended Reading – both on kindle

"The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse" is a wonderful book filled with beautiful thoughts and significant meaning on many levels, expressed in simple yet eloquent words. The author of "The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse" is Charlie Mackesy, a British cartoonist for The Spectator and book illustrator for Oxford University Press.

Mackesy describes this stunning 128-page gem (published by HarperOne, October 2019) in his introduction: "This book is for everyone, whether you are eighty or eight. I feel like both sometimes."

Hear, hear! Mackesy's tiny but huge opus has all the magic and wisdom of "The Velveteen Rabbit": it will stir up your emotions and comfort you. It's short and real and sweet without being icky. It's ideal for savoring alone or for reading out loud to a gathering of your family or housemates.

Mackesy's charming handwriting pairs beautifully with his illustrations, making it also a visually delightful read. He explains that the adventures of the boy, the mole, the fox and the horse take place in the spring "where one moment snow is falling and the sun shines the next, which is also a little bit like life — it can turn on a sixpence." Pretty much sums up what's going on in the world…

Mackesy is a wonderful storyteller, and one fervent hope is that his words of wisdom and astute observations will touch every one who reads or listens to this meaningful allegory. "The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse" might be what helps to strengthen and support you during this most unsettled time in the history of the world.

For those who prefer action tales, there's Norman Fine's "Blind Bombing" wherein he brings to life "How Microwave Radar Brought the Allies to D-Day and Victory in World War II" (2019 by Potomac Books, University of Nebraska Press).

This all started nearly a century ago, but you would think the author had a front row seat as he recounts the events leading to the invention and implementation of microwave radar and the role American pilots played. It's an amazing account of what it took for the Allies to win World War II. It's a huge chunk of world history, featuring our own nation.

History buffs especially will go bananas over Fine's meticulous research and his superlative storytelling will engage anyone, especially if you're interested in high tech and inventions. It has a heckuva plot, packed with interesting detail. To keep current with arcane abbreviations and acronyms, Fine includes an alphabetical list, which is very helpful.

In 1934, in England, an official requested building a "death ray" – damaging radiation that could be beamed at enemy aircraft. Their Meteorological genius, an electrical engineer, delved into it with the conclusion it would be even more harmful to their own side. His work detecting weather fronts with radio waves supported a pet theory: that aircraft detection might prove more fruitful than a destructive death ray...

Fine, a retired electronics engineer, approaches his subject like a pack of foxhounds unraveling scent – i.e. with drive and determination. He is a horseman and foxhunting enthusiast, a longtime resident of neighboring Clarke County. In the course of his fact-finding missions, Fine uncovers unknown "intel' about his own uncle, Stanley Fine; no one in the Fine family had a clue. Uncle Stanley had a lot to do with the Allies winning the war, which made it a personal quest for Fine to do right with this saga. The stuff of a PBS series, at least!

"Blind Bombing" is a fascinating must-read for history, science, technology enthusiasts and for anyone interested in a great tale that just happens to be true.

Take care, be well, stay healthy!