By now anyone that reads my posts has heard me mention a few times that I love Christmas. I like the sounds, the sights, the smells and the memories that seem to come to me like gifts to be opened every year.
Every year when we put up the tree and I start to unpack the ornaments, I get to experience so many good memories as I take each ornament out of its box. Some people like to have the perfect decorator tree with the color coordinated ornaments to make just the right statement. I, on the other hand, love having each ornament mean something special to me that makes me think of someone or some place every time I look at it.
I have ornaments on the tree that my sons made when they were in school and I cherish them as if they were made of gold. One that I love is an egg angel that my older son made. It’s an egg that he put a small hole in the bottom of and then blew out the egg. Next he drew eyes and a nose and mouth and glued on paper wings. It’s been on our tree for twenty-five years or so. Another I love is a gods eye that the youngest son made. It’s two popsicle sticks with green yarn woven to make the gods eye. Simple but I love it. And the middle son painted a pre-cast figure of a guy with a santa hat leaning against a cactus and it makes me smile every year when I take it out to hang on the tree. (I think he must have made that one when we lived in Texas.) There are others but these are my favorites.
Some of my other treasured ornaments are those that have been given to me by people that I love. One of my daughters-in-law gives me an ornament every year at Thanksgiving and I always look forward to seeing what she picked out. One year my husband and I and all of the kids and grandkids went to Disney in December. They bought us a huge ornament with the year on it and I love it dearly. It’s a replacement for the original one they had gotten us that got broken.
I have quite a few ornaments that have very special meaning to me due to the reason that they were given to us. Several years ago we put up a huge real tree and it was beautiful but we discovered that it had a crooked trunk. I think it was a pain to do but my husband finally got it in the stand and it looked great. We decorated it and were quite happy with the way it looked when we finished.
The next morning I got up as usual about 5:30 and made my way to the kitchen to put the coffee on. As I was walking towards the kitchen, I looked over towards the family room and there lay the tree with broken glass ornaments all around. I was so shocked that I started screaming and practically scared my husband to death. He came running from the bedroom and all I could do was cry and scream that all of my ornaments were broken.
He finally shut me up and started to survey the damage and sure enough most of the glass ornaments were ruined. The egg angel had miraculously survived. The original huge glass Mickey Mouse that the kids had given us was broken as were lots of others that had sentimental value. After cleaning up the mess, we both went to work where I was a complete emotional wreck the entire day. Every time someone asked me about my red and puffy eyes, I would cry again.
That day when I got home from work I found a wonderful surprise. The bar in the kitchen was covered with new ornaments that the two daughters-in-law that knew about the tree had gone out and bought. The two of them had spent a lot of time choosing new ornaments that they knew that I would love. Well of course I cried some more.
So this year and every year since then I take out the ornaments that they chose and I hold them gently and look at them and think about how much it meant to me to come home to find them that day. That memory is very special to me. I hang them on the tree in spots that I know that I will be able to see them all through the holidays. Looking at them makes me feel blessed to be loved and to have the gift of memories to enjoy time and time again.
Showing posts with label nonfiction - life. Show all posts
Showing posts with label nonfiction - life. Show all posts
Monday, January 12, 2009
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Thankful
I love Thanksgiving: the preparation, the menu planning, the grocery shopping for all the fixings for dinner and the actual cooking. I start thinking about it in October and I even enjoy the waiting for the big day to arrive.
I cook the same things my mother cooked in pretty much the same way that she cooked them. The stuffing or dressing as we call it in the South and the macaroni and cheese and the sweet potato casserole are all based on her original recipes. I’ve modified them somewhat and try not to add as much butter but you can’t skimp too much or the taste just won’t be the same.
As hard as I try to avoid fats, I just can’t bring myself to cook the fresh green beans without the bacon and the pecan pies definitely don’t qualify as health food. There are some things that are just too sacred to fool with and Thanksgiving dinner is one of them. I figure that avoiding all the bad stuff most of the year entitles me to eat however I want this one day. And actually, it’s not the eating as much as cooking it and putting it on the table for everyone else that I enjoy.
I love when everyone sits around the kitchen and sniffs and carries on about how good it smells and how they can’t wait to eat. There’s chitchat about the parade and who’s been doing what and how the weather is cooperating so beautifully. This is what the whole thing is about to me. As I peel those ten pounds of white potatoes and ten pounds of sweet potatoes, I have a lot of time to reflect on the things that I am thankful for. The number one thing on my list is my family.
I am very thankful that my sons and their families live nearby. It’s something that I am used to but definitely don’t take for granted. Being able to see and talk to them a few times a week is a wonderful thing. When my grandkids are in plays at school or playing some type of sport, I can be there. I think about how wonderful that it is that one of my sons can drop by to talk for a few minutes and I know that I am truly blessed and I’m thankful everyday but on Thanksgiving I take an extra few minutes to give my thanks.
Everyday I’m thankful for my husband. He’s my very best friend and after all these years, I still enjoy his company. We were just kids when we got married so we grew up together and I can’t imagine not having him in my life. When we get on each other’s nerves and have a few cross words to say, I know that one of us will walk up and give the other one a hug and a kiss and everything will be all right again. And on Thanksgiving, I’m especially thankful that he snaps the beans for me and grates the cheese and really thankful that he puts the twenty-five pound turkey in the oven for me. Sometimes it’s the little things.
I am thankful for our men and women serving our country who can’t be at home in their kitchens cooking a Thanksgiving dinner surrounded by family. We owe them all a debt of gratitude whether we approve of the war or not. I think of them everyday but especially on holidays when we are all enjoying our families and friends.
When dinner is finally ready and everything is on the table and we have all joined hands, I am truly thankful for the little voices saying the grace, “God is great, God is good, let us thank Him for our food. Amen.” And after dinner is finished and the kitchen is somewhat back to normal, I know that these same little voices will be out on the patio putting on their annual Thanksgiving show for all of us. The voices will now be a little louder as the show usually entails much singing and laughing. Life is definitely good and I am most thankful.
I cook the same things my mother cooked in pretty much the same way that she cooked them. The stuffing or dressing as we call it in the South and the macaroni and cheese and the sweet potato casserole are all based on her original recipes. I’ve modified them somewhat and try not to add as much butter but you can’t skimp too much or the taste just won’t be the same.
As hard as I try to avoid fats, I just can’t bring myself to cook the fresh green beans without the bacon and the pecan pies definitely don’t qualify as health food. There are some things that are just too sacred to fool with and Thanksgiving dinner is one of them. I figure that avoiding all the bad stuff most of the year entitles me to eat however I want this one day. And actually, it’s not the eating as much as cooking it and putting it on the table for everyone else that I enjoy.
I love when everyone sits around the kitchen and sniffs and carries on about how good it smells and how they can’t wait to eat. There’s chitchat about the parade and who’s been doing what and how the weather is cooperating so beautifully. This is what the whole thing is about to me. As I peel those ten pounds of white potatoes and ten pounds of sweet potatoes, I have a lot of time to reflect on the things that I am thankful for. The number one thing on my list is my family.
I am very thankful that my sons and their families live nearby. It’s something that I am used to but definitely don’t take for granted. Being able to see and talk to them a few times a week is a wonderful thing. When my grandkids are in plays at school or playing some type of sport, I can be there. I think about how wonderful that it is that one of my sons can drop by to talk for a few minutes and I know that I am truly blessed and I’m thankful everyday but on Thanksgiving I take an extra few minutes to give my thanks.
Everyday I’m thankful for my husband. He’s my very best friend and after all these years, I still enjoy his company. We were just kids when we got married so we grew up together and I can’t imagine not having him in my life. When we get on each other’s nerves and have a few cross words to say, I know that one of us will walk up and give the other one a hug and a kiss and everything will be all right again. And on Thanksgiving, I’m especially thankful that he snaps the beans for me and grates the cheese and really thankful that he puts the twenty-five pound turkey in the oven for me. Sometimes it’s the little things.
I am thankful for our men and women serving our country who can’t be at home in their kitchens cooking a Thanksgiving dinner surrounded by family. We owe them all a debt of gratitude whether we approve of the war or not. I think of them everyday but especially on holidays when we are all enjoying our families and friends.
When dinner is finally ready and everything is on the table and we have all joined hands, I am truly thankful for the little voices saying the grace, “God is great, God is good, let us thank Him for our food. Amen.” And after dinner is finished and the kitchen is somewhat back to normal, I know that these same little voices will be out on the patio putting on their annual Thanksgiving show for all of us. The voices will now be a little louder as the show usually entails much singing and laughing. Life is definitely good and I am most thankful.
Monday, November 17, 2008
Endeavor - A Bright Light in the Sky
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27718900
Tonight we witnessed an incredible event, the launching of the space shuttle Endeavor. What an amazing sight it was! We watched from our dock on the small lake that we live on and the view was incredible. The shuttle came up over the trees across the lake and lit up the sky with its brilliance. It looked like a bright, flaming ball of fire as it sped across the sky. As it separated, it flashed even brighter. We were able to see it for several minutes as it made its way into outer space.
The conditions were perfect for viewing the shuttles’ launching. You couldn’t have asked for a clearer sky and the stars and the full moon were the perfect co-stars to this phenomenal spectacle. It would have been impossible to see this without being in awe of the entire space program. It is one thing to read that we send astronauts into space but to see it left me feeling so proud of our country’s accomplishments and of the brave men and women who are willing to take this risk for science.
We’ve come so far since that first walk in space and one can only imagine what the future can bring. When I was young, we certainly didn’t think that in our lifetime on a clear, starlit night seven brave Americans would take off to a space station to do “home repairs” on a space station that houses astronauts for months at a time until their replacement arrives. This was the stuff that you saw in the movies and read in science fiction books and now it is reality.
If I seem to be a little carried away with this “routine” flight tonight, it’s because I am. We need to have these moments when we recognize the good that is going on in our country and to reaffirm our faith hat we will persevere and continue to be a great nation. I can tell you as I stood out watching the moon reflect over the water and listened to the splashing of the occasional frog, I unabashedly felt like singing the Star Spangled Banner.
I am proud to be an American and wish a safe journey to our men and women on the Endeavor and hope that their mission will be successful.
Tonight we witnessed an incredible event, the launching of the space shuttle Endeavor. What an amazing sight it was! We watched from our dock on the small lake that we live on and the view was incredible. The shuttle came up over the trees across the lake and lit up the sky with its brilliance. It looked like a bright, flaming ball of fire as it sped across the sky. As it separated, it flashed even brighter. We were able to see it for several minutes as it made its way into outer space.
The conditions were perfect for viewing the shuttles’ launching. You couldn’t have asked for a clearer sky and the stars and the full moon were the perfect co-stars to this phenomenal spectacle. It would have been impossible to see this without being in awe of the entire space program. It is one thing to read that we send astronauts into space but to see it left me feeling so proud of our country’s accomplishments and of the brave men and women who are willing to take this risk for science.
We’ve come so far since that first walk in space and one can only imagine what the future can bring. When I was young, we certainly didn’t think that in our lifetime on a clear, starlit night seven brave Americans would take off to a space station to do “home repairs” on a space station that houses astronauts for months at a time until their replacement arrives. This was the stuff that you saw in the movies and read in science fiction books and now it is reality.
If I seem to be a little carried away with this “routine” flight tonight, it’s because I am. We need to have these moments when we recognize the good that is going on in our country and to reaffirm our faith hat we will persevere and continue to be a great nation. I can tell you as I stood out watching the moon reflect over the water and listened to the splashing of the occasional frog, I unabashedly felt like singing the Star Spangled Banner.
I am proud to be an American and wish a safe journey to our men and women on the Endeavor and hope that their mission will be successful.