THE THRILL OF IT ALL

 This year, this year, has been a year that cannot be described in ordinary words such as 'difficult' or even 'horrific'.  As a planet, we passed 'horrific' back in the summer.  BUT there are still so many small, sometimes very small things we can find to give us joy, to give us a moment of peace.  We cannot compare the stress and inconvenience and frustration and yes, even fear, that most of us are experiencing'  with the stress of front-line workers, the desolation of loss of so many, the fear of loss of shelter and food.  These are terrible, unacceptable experiences for all our fellow humans.  

But if we can, and when we can, we can find a moment of laughter, a bit of relief from reality, in such very small things.  A dianthus plant blooming in December, tiny and fragrant:

And just today, a daughter calling and wondering if perhaps, just perhaps, we would like a gift of her wonderful home-made chocolate and peanut candy.  Not just the offer, but the priceless look of total delight on the faces of her father and brother, gave us all a few minutes of laughing and celebrating the offer and the anticipation.

There are many moments to mourn, just now, but there are also moments to rejoice, to listen to Christmas songs as if for the first time, to hope, to plan, to believe in the future.