Thanks Dave. I sincerely wish you and yours both peace and happiness.
"There's a silver lining to every black cloud." A nice sentiment, but I don't believe this at all. Not at all. But what I do believe and hold onto is finding small miracles of beauty around me everyday. Finding them keeps me going through bad times. They won't be miracles to most people, and they needn't be big flamboyant shows of colour and special effects...just the small things that make a difference. They make a difference to me. Like the breathe of wind and the woodsy smells it brings, the myriad of colours in an overgrown ditch of goldenrod and grass, the funny way kids have of skipping home from school on a friday afternoon, a neighbourhood cat dozing in a sunny spot next to a fence, and an elderly neighbour leaning on my fence complaining about the government and the weather...his eyes watering and his nose running from the cold...and then he smiles.
I wish you and everyone here peace. Peace to find our own small miracles at this time of year.
Peace to find what this extra screw was for after putting together a Christmas toy, peace to remember who gave me this ugly Christmas sweater, peace to smile at the strange looking marshmallow salad passed to me at dinnertime (which I hate so much and pass down the table saying "mmm looks good"), peace to find comfort sitting on a low rickety stool at a big family Christmas dinner table next to somebody who's name I can't remember (but they remember mine)...
and peace to just let all the stressful cares go for awhile. Till next year, and throughout the year. Peace.
