The Jeep is lookin' more mud than metal after those backroad puddles today, and my hair is a wild nest of red and silver

I’m standin' out here in the soft afternoon light, tendin' to a brisket that’s been slow-bathin’ in hickory smoke since the sun came up. Marly, my sweet girl dog, is keepin' a close watch on the smoker, hopin' for a stray scrap while the sound of the family laughin' on the porch drifts over like a melody. My hands are a little greasy and my jeans are stained with Hill Country clay, but there is a deep, quiet joy in being this messy and this happy all at once. It’s the kind of Texas spring day that reminds you how the best things in life, good food, fast friends, and a little dirt, take their own sweet time to get just right. I’m just soaking in the karma of a house full of love and the smell of woodsmoke in my clothes.