Happy New Year - Welcome 2022

 Welcome 2022, You have got to be an  improvement on 2021.

Well yes! Indeed! We made it through 2021. It was a bit rough at times. I am thankful, I stayed healthy; though I gained a bit of weight. I am thankful, I did a little traveling; though I had to wear a mask and wash my hands often - that was OK. I am thankful; for each of you, dear friends and family, though I may have not been able to see you in person. I am thankful; just for the joy of the everyday through the music, the dancing, the art, and the walks around the block. 

 Dr. Seuss said, "You’ll never get bored when you try something new. There’s really no limit to what you can do."

I love trying new things, learning more about you and me, and playing a bit. 

For many of us it was learning to use zoom just to keep in touch with others. It has been a time of learning how to navigate in a different world keeping 6 feet apart! Ha! How are you doing there?

What new thing would you like to try in 2022? 

 For me in 2022 I know I just need to keep moving, 6 feet apart, laughing, listening to more music, hugging, playing; but most of all BE satisfied with just staying in place. Now that is a hard one for me because I like adventures. So yes, there will be a few adventures too; though they will be planned with care. Tucking my mask in my pocket, my hand sanitizer in my purse, taking a deep breathe, and off I will go.

Again quoting Dr. Seuss:

 Oh, the Places You'll Go!

Congratulations!
Today is your day.
You're off to Great Places!
You're off and away!

....You have feet in your shoes, You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You're on your own......

 May your new year be full of blessings yet unseen, good health, laughter, and a bit of night music. Happy New Year, dear friends!

Pictures are from my own back yard earlier this week.

Word for the Week, A Final Word for 2021

 Many words run through my mind. I could share the word "receive", as that was my word for the year. But I decided to share my favorite word over the 25plus years I have chosen a word for the year. Can you guess what it might be?

  Nature brings me JOY.

JOY still, for me, is my favorite word over the years. If you notice I always write it in all capital letters. JOY just needs to stand out and be taken notice. We need to capture it in our hands, hold it tight, wrap it around us, and tuck it into our hearts.

Music brings me JOY.

The following quote came to mind when I began thinking about this word to share today. From the Bible in Psalm 30:5 - "Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning." I don't wish for anyone to weep in the night, but sometimes life does bring weeping. Let's all remember that with weeping we must notice the JOY that follows.

 

Sparkle brings me JOY.

How do you feel when you experience JOY? Is it just a little giggle inside of you, a smile on your face, or full out laughter. What most often brings JOY to your heart? 

Home brings me JOY.

May your life be full of JOY each and every day and throughout 2022.

Do you pick a word for the year? I hope so. It really has taught me so much over the years, but most often it has taught me to just "notice what I notice" and be attentive to what is tucked in my heart.

Yes, I do have a word for 2022. Amazingly, it is a very simple word; but I can't wait to see what it teaches me this coming year. Next week I will have a new Monday series. I am sure words will still show up, but in a different way. For now I will sit and just savor this very moment and just BE. My word for 2022 is BE.

 

A Little Night Music

 Blessings to you, my dear ones, on this Christmas Eve. 

A gift of music and a little night lights from Portland, Oregon

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-oPWoxc2wk

Portland has had a rough year in the news. What you see is violence and destruction in our downtown area. It is trying to do better and this was what the downtown looked like as I left a little night music.

In the center of town stands this beautiful tree.

It was a rainy night, but still so beautiful. A bit of peace and joy on a cold winter's night.

Sending best wishes for some silent nights, nights filled with JOY, and a day of peace reigning in each of our lives.

Merry Christmas, dear friends!

Word for the Week

 

Gift

noun: gift; plural noun: gifts

1. a thing given willingly to someone without payment; a present.

   "a Christmas gift"

   
   

   verb

verb: gift; 3rd person present: gifts; past tense: gifted; past participle: gifted; gerund or present participle: gifting

1. give (something) as a gift, especially formally or as a donation or bequest.

   "the company gifted 2,999 shares to a charity"

   • present (someone) with a gift or gifts.

     "the director gifted her with a heart-shaped brooch"

      

     

     My word for this year is receive.

     As the year has moved along I realized receive and give go together. I love giving gifts, but have always had a difficult time receiving them. In a way I don't feel worthy of receiving; so never know how to react to the gift.

     This year I have wrapped my gifts under the tree earlier than usual. I am so excited to be giving each gift.

      

     I asked my "live-in gardener" what gift means to him and his answer was "undeserving mercy".
     

     

     I am trying through my word "receive" to be a gracious receiver of gifts.

     For me giving and receiving are a part of the gift and joy of the season. Many are giving to their favorite charity too. I was thrilled to be able to donate a bag of socks to my church pantry. My church body are wonderful givers. We are sponsoring an Afghan family and I was thrilled to also be able to give the gift of tea as they set up their household.

     Thus said, I am having to remind myself to be "thrilled" with the gifts I receive. It's a hard one for me.

     How do you handle giving and receiving of gifts? Is it just me or do you also have a difficult time with gifts?
     

Have you found a word for 2022?

Or maybe you don't choose a word.

I have had a word each year for about 25 years and the word always impacts me in ways that surprise me each year.

Have a terrific week, dear friends!

Merry Christmas!

 

Like strands of shining tinsel,

Hope will ever weave

Through his sorrow, who remembers

Candles Christmas Eve.

His tongue will not grow bitter

Who learns in youth the glory

Of the old sweet Christmas carols

And the manger story.

Nor love and faith quite vanish

For one with memories

Of dreams come true on laden,

Star-tipped Christmas trees.

So fill the house with fragrance

Of cedar boughs, with laughter-

These are gifts a child heart

Will keep forever after.

 

~Kitchen Sonnets by Ethel Romig Fuller

 

My Christmas card to you.

Sending love and best wishes for an extra special Christmas week.

Word for the Week

 One of the first holiday events I attend every year is the Christmas show at my favorite antique mall. I don't attend to buy necessarily; though sometimes I do. I go just to get in the holiday spirit and to begin the anticipation of events throughout December. I also take my little camera and love snapping a few pictures just to really enjoy the beauty each time I look back at my pictures.

Anticipation is the word this week. Are you anticipating Christmas celebrations? I wrote a small story recently on Anticipation; so the following words are my story.

"With the wiggle of his nose and a twitch of his whiskers,

little mouse sat waiting in the cupboard rather impatiently.

He could hardly contain his excitement.

Christmas was coming and sweet things would appear.

At the top of his list was a Christmas cake.

The scent of nuts, fruit, and a big round cherry just made him quiver.

A big star shaped cookie delighted his soul.

It sparkled with sugar crystals.

Like each child’s memories say, “cherish the moment”, dance for joy,

Nibble the delights, and snuggle by the fire on a cold winter’s night,

Little mouse shared in this excitement, this day was indeed for joy.

While little mouse was impatiently waiting in the cupboard,

Outdoors a bushy tailed squirrel was busy tucking nuts in the garden.

He was digging holes beside the big tree and hiding them away.

Down the line he would come with a large nut firmly held between his teeth.

He has carried it far and knows the garden is a safe place to be.

In my mind I wonder, will he find them again.

His feast waits for him on a cold winter’s night and he nibbles.

Then he sleeps in his nest of leaves high in the tree,

And sugar plums and nuts do pirouettes in his head.

I sit with my tea, warming my hands.

They are wrapped tightly around a red cup.

I watch as mouse and squirrel scamper by.

I dream of Christmas cakes, star cookies, nuts, and big round cherries.

Gingerbread houses and tinsel on trees, I anticipate with glee.

I dance beneath the branches, nibble while sitting on toadstools.

Savoring the little things and celebrating each day with delight.

We have planted more trees in the forest and in the city too.

We dance and sing, encouraging them to grow.

As snow begins to fall, it warms their roots with a blanket of warmth

And when spring turns the snow to water, it will water them well.

One day long from now children will gaze up in wonder.

Hope for the future we hold firmly in our hands

And we dream with anticipation of a better day to come.

We dream of sugarplums, fairies and dreams coming true."

 

Sending dreams come true for you this Christmas season.

Anticipate the good things and delight in each day.