Christmas 2014
December 2014
Greetings and welcome to all this holiday season! I ask forgiveness for the lateness of this missive, but the holidays were demanding this year, and while I got everything done that I needed to, I did not quite get done what I wanted to.
As always, we begin with the feline portion of our family. Critter has achieved 14 years of life, and at this time, is slower, quieter, and less active. She marks the blessings of her day by warming herself in patches of sunshine, and watching dogs walk their people in the park across the street. Now that the weather has chilled, she sprawls in front of a little portable heater or (at night) buries herself under my covers, content to warm her toes against my belly.
I continue to work at a maximum security prison. The nicest part of my day is my commute, for it fills my soul with beauty-whether it be watching the sky blush at sunrise as I drive parallel to the ocean, or tucked away on my commuter bus, drowsily viewing the moon shine on the waters of a nearby lake. I am so lucky to be living where I live, where I can see the lights of Victoria glow on the nighttime horizon, or watch the neighborhood deer munch on my roses (dammit!).
My house continues to be a money pit, with a major project or two on the horizon-but one of the smaller projects I completed this past autumn was planting 300+ spring bulbs in my garden. Spring shall be glorious for me, I hope.
Shellie lives closest to me (outside Seattle), and works at Verizon, while Elizabeth is still working and going to Washington State University.
With the start of this New Year, I have the greatest of hopes that it will be amazing and fun. But preparing for the future reminds me that I (and others like me) need to be Fearless. And it will go something like this:
Take thought in treating all with kindness and, inasmuch as circumstance allows, fairness. Be fearless in being courteous-even if you don’t feel like it. Be strong when it comes to protecting or sticking up for someone smaller or lesser than you, for it will not be a popular decision. Be fearless in your beliefs. You don’t have to talk about them, but surely, you embody them by the life you live.
Be fierce in self-care, in remembering to say no, and not working beyond your strength. The best blessings are shared from a full glass, or from a continuously renewed spirit, or from a bountiful, rested soul.
Be fearless in actively promoting good. Look for the smallest moments, the littlest opportunities to do or say or listen or praise. Smile often. Be fierce and brave and daring in doing good to all, not just a favored few. Have courage. Be brave. Be fearless.
During this newest year of our lives, I hope we find it easy to be . . . Fearless.
Greetings and welcome to all this holiday season! I ask forgiveness for the lateness of this missive, but the holidays were demanding this year, and while I got everything done that I needed to, I did not quite get done what I wanted to.
As always, we begin with the feline portion of our family. Critter has achieved 14 years of life, and at this time, is slower, quieter, and less active. She marks the blessings of her day by warming herself in patches of sunshine, and watching dogs walk their people in the park across the street. Now that the weather has chilled, she sprawls in front of a little portable heater or (at night) buries herself under my covers, content to warm her toes against my belly.
I continue to work at a maximum security prison. The nicest part of my day is my commute, for it fills my soul with beauty-whether it be watching the sky blush at sunrise as I drive parallel to the ocean, or tucked away on my commuter bus, drowsily viewing the moon shine on the waters of a nearby lake. I am so lucky to be living where I live, where I can see the lights of Victoria glow on the nighttime horizon, or watch the neighborhood deer munch on my roses (dammit!).
My house continues to be a money pit, with a major project or two on the horizon-but one of the smaller projects I completed this past autumn was planting 300+ spring bulbs in my garden. Spring shall be glorious for me, I hope.
Shellie lives closest to me (outside Seattle), and works at Verizon, while Elizabeth is still working and going to Washington State University.
With the start of this New Year, I have the greatest of hopes that it will be amazing and fun. But preparing for the future reminds me that I (and others like me) need to be Fearless. And it will go something like this:
Take thought in treating all with kindness and, inasmuch as circumstance allows, fairness. Be fearless in being courteous-even if you don’t feel like it. Be strong when it comes to protecting or sticking up for someone smaller or lesser than you, for it will not be a popular decision. Be fearless in your beliefs. You don’t have to talk about them, but surely, you embody them by the life you live.
Be fierce in self-care, in remembering to say no, and not working beyond your strength. The best blessings are shared from a full glass, or from a continuously renewed spirit, or from a bountiful, rested soul.
Be fearless in actively promoting good. Look for the smallest moments, the littlest opportunities to do or say or listen or praise. Smile often. Be fierce and brave and daring in doing good to all, not just a favored few. Have courage. Be brave. Be fearless.
During this newest year of our lives, I hope we find it easy to be . . . Fearless.