Random Thoughts

"Winter is the time for comfort, for good food and warmth, for the touch of a friendly hand, and for a talk beside the fire: it is the time for family." Edith Sitwell December 1st. I guess it's official. Even though I'm sitting on the couch typing when I have a whole host of other things to get done, the beginning of December brings with it the beginning of the Christmas Season. For some the season starts with Black Friday, or sitting in front of a roaring fire addressing Christmas cards. For me, the season begins when I feel the need to my pop John Denver and the Muppets CD into the player, turn up the volume and loudly sing some of my favorite songs. Actually my list of favorite Christmas tunes is pretty long and eclectic. From Barbara Streisand to Miss Piggy to the Irish Tenors to Elvis I seem to like them all. Weneki has made me several compilation CD's. It's hard to pick a fave. One year I sent every Christmas CD I own to her and I think it cost a pretty ...

Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it. William Arthur Ward I was just over at the NaBloPoMo site and the few lines I read indicate that a lot of every day posters have already finished the assignment. Being the kind that swings from over-achieving (finish early) to under-achieving (typing right up to the last minute) for once I seem to be stuck right in the middle! Today I'm grateful for a few things. First of all, for my son, KeyWest Johnny. Today is his 36th birthday. I wish he was here so I could give him a big hug and make his favorite dinner. It's been too long since I've seen him up close and personal. I can remember vividly (which in itself is a reason for gratitude) the night I sat in a big 12-step circle with other people who were all there for the same reason - relief, understanding and hope. A man I didn't know told this horrendous story of his child's behavior that ended up with a shouting match and police s...

"Touch the earth, love the earth, honor the earth. her plains, her valleys, her seas. Rest your soul in her solitary places." Henry Beston I'm grateful today that this month is almost over. However, blogging every day has been more joy than burden. Sometimes (often?) I am just rebellious enough to want to break the rules and do my own thing. Having a theme has been easier for me than I expected. I can't say that my entire outlook on life has changed because of gratitude but it has improved, if only for the time I'm writing. Part of the trick of gratitude is awareness. Another important aspect is also holding that awareness in your consciousness long enough for it to make a difference. We say grace every night before dinner. We've been doing it for as long as I can remember. Some nights it's heartfelt to look at all the blessings before me and give thanks. Some nights I sassy enough to just say "Grace" and dig in. During this month of gratitude, ...

"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity... It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow." Melody Beattie I'm grateful today for an email I got from a blog friend. It's a little strange to be thankful for something that makes your stomach tighten and tears run down your face. Yet, even as I reacted in fear, I knew what she was doing was opening a door to my heart. By honestly sharing her own story she showed me a way to change the way I see some things in my life. I'm grateful to Sweetie for knowing without words that something big was happening. He listened and comforted. He made some suggestions and encouraged me to look fear in the face and make some changes. I'm grateful...

"Everyday, think as you wake up: Today I am fortunate to have woken up. I am alive. I have a precious human life. I am not going to waste it. I am going to use all my energies to develop myself to expand my heart out to others for the benefit of all beings." His Holiness the XIVth Dalai Lama This has been a very quiet day that I've used for re-writing a story I first penned right after my mother passed away. Today, I'm grateful for the gift of story-telling and hope to get better and better. It would be nice, too, if I could get faster! Like most things, when I get caught up something, everything else gets put on the back burner. I look around the room where I've been sitting and it's clear the only way it's going to get picked up is for me to put this computer in a closet, lock it up, and give the key to Sweetie til it can pass inspection. Of course I will do nothing that drastic, but I could at least clear off the couch so that there is room for someone ...

Photo: Father/Brother George, Russ, my sister, Judy "Forever on Thanksgiving Day the heart will find the pathway home." Wilbur D. Nesbit As Thanksgivings go, this one was different. Not bad different, but a little off. Probably because I had nothing to do. I baked pies yesterday and that was my contribution. Over at my sister's house they were busy all day. Like most Thanksgivings since the Pilgrims sat around the open campfire, there was a bounty of food to be grateful for. And like most Thanksgiving everyone over-indulged. But oh, it was all so very good. Since I wasn't cooking I gave myself holiday hours at home. I got up long enough to feed my father his breakfast then mosied on back to bed. I felt a little guilty, but couldn't find the energy to do much about it. After noon, I pulled myself up and attacked the pile of ironing I'd put off for too long. Sweetie and I watched another Sandra Bullock movie and had a few good laughs before it went all haywi...

"Sully and I both believe that gratitude is a two-way street and we do our best to give back the outpouring of support and gratitude we have been so fortunate to receive. Lorrie Sullenberter (wife of US Air Flt. #1549 pilot, Sully Sullenberger)* Today I'm grateful for rain. It's been dreary and overcast for two days. Today if finally rained. Not a gully-washer but enough to have to use the windshield wipers. I'm also grateful for canned pumpkin, an apple-peeling Sweetie, and an oven that I don't have to tend by throwing logs on the fire. Looking at the mess I made after making 3 pies and 4 loaves of pumpkin bread, I think I am also pretty thankful for an automated dishwasher. I'm not a clean as you go kind of cook. When I've finished a big baking project the kitchen pretty much looks like a flour bomb exploded in the middle of the room. I'm grateful I am not cooking Thanksgiving dinner. That job is going to my sister this year. All I have to do is show ...