The grass is always greener...

I like to think that it doesn't happen very often but I was having one of those awful days today. You know the ones where you can feel it building and try as you may to redirect your energy you keep heading back in the same direction of Doomsville. Finally, after the “ump teenth” time of feeling like the wind was taken out from under me I decided to go visit the one person who could always change my direction, knock some sense into me and help me realize my potential to get through the impossible.

I hadn't been to see him for a while. Even though I think about him almost every day I hadn't taken the time to really stop and have a conversation. Beautiful fall days have always been both our favorite times of year so I took the short drive down the street, parked the car and sat and visited for a while. Ok I will admit a few tears fell during our visit but then as I was leaving I noticed a tree full of monarch butterflies. It was amazing! I'm sure they were there when I arrived but until our visit I was so focused on what was in the moment I forgot to look at what was all around.

As I was getting back into the office I received a text from a friend in the hospital. It was hard to read but she wanted me to contact her husband. After a few frantic emails and texts I soon learned she had given birth to twins this morning. Several weeks early one much smaller than the other but both babies breathing on their own and girls and Momma doing well. And I thought what a beautiful fall day it turned out to be.

With all the ups and downs of the day one image has kept repeating in my mind. As I was leaving the cemetery from visiting my Dad's grave this afternoon I observed an older gentleman. He was dressed as if he was an avid gardener and drove a bright yellow older model Volkswagen convertible with duct tape on the back window and if you could judge a book by its cover he looked like the type of guy who had lived a few adventures in his day. As I watched he took a 5 gallon bucket out of his car and dipped a galvanized watering can into it and began sprinkling water all over one small area of grass. It was so touching I had to take a second look into his private moment and say a small thank you to him and his beloved and a reaffirmation to myself to remember to make everyday count and to leave a lasting impression on everyone I meet in hopes that I may touch someone enough that through a long hot summer’s drought they may care enough to make sure I have greener grass for eternity!

All That Glitters

Happy New Year Everyone. I spent my weekend de-festivalizing the house. The tree looked so lonely without all the strategically placed packages brightly wrapped with well mastered bows gone from its skirt. This years adornment included lots of red. A monotone of paper and bows. Am I the only one out there that is crazy enough to coordinate wrapping with my decor? I can never bring myself to buy wrapping paper on the clearance isle after Christmas because I just don't know what the mood set will be when the Holiday comes back around!

As the tree was coming down Saturday my cat sat on the top of my chair giving me the cold shoulder. He loves when the gifts are gone and he can lurk beneath the branches awaiting to pounce on his co-feline, a human or simply air. Beneath the tree he carries the smug look on his face that he is in his natural habitat amongst the nature of faux fir trees. Or maybe it is his mindset that he has just possibly talked his people into putting this hiding spot in for the entire season. Nonetheless, he was not amused at the dismantling of the territory he had claimed once the Christmas festivities were through and the visiting dogs had made their leave. I should think my furry friend would be ready to normalize the house again as he has spent the last few months with his fur shining like diamonds in the sun from the abundance of glitter in the house.

Ah Glitter, I am so amazingly attracted to things that shine! Give me precious stones that gleam, crystals and rhinestones that shine strategically placed upon the perfect little black dress. Oh and then there is that amazing dust which comes in a plastic vile ready to turn any (and every) surface into a show stopper. This type of craft store glitter in my mind is reserved for Christmas, brave teachers, mothers and Sunday School Projects. No matter your preference of time or place for the shine, glitter has seem to make a come back in recent years in holiday decor.

Maybe glitter is there to remind us of Christmas' past. Maybe it is there to catch our eye, even for a brief moment and remind us to be grateful. Year after year this magic dust sheds just enough to leave us small reminders throughout the year. As if it realizes that once the trinkets are boxed and packed away and the floors are swept and vacuumed the house feels a bit empty. Absent is the adornment. Gone is the constant reminder of the magical season on giving and there is an uuncertainty of when the entire family will be under roof together again. But just as I start to feel the grey of winter there in the corner is a glisten reminding me of the the newness January brings and I must get started on the list of resolutions. On my list what will you find the usual organization and fitness but also keeping a gratitude journal and more gatherings for family and friends in 2012. Hey who knows I may even break out the glitter soon to create some invites.