Hello from “just over the hilltop” on this beautiful sunny December day in Norwood. I am still trying to catch up with myself and not talk to myself too much. Although I don’t mind the discussions I have with me, myself, and I. We get along very well.
The weather has been lovely with warming temperatures and rain that took the beautiful snow back to bare ground. The days are reaching their shortest, the nights the longest, and by the end of this week all will be reversed. Isn’t it marvelous how the times and seasons revolve each year and though each is different they are welcomed and enjoyed for all they offer. Winter is not my favorite, but it is full of beauty and fun sports.
I’ve been thinking……….how lovely it is to take a drive in the evening around the neighborhood and view the lights and decorations. It reminds me that “Jesus is the light of the world and in Him is no darkness.” Candles are put in windows, white or colored lights surround a door, porch, or bush, and blow-up Snoopy, Santa, or Snowmen adorn some yards. My favorite is a simple wreath with candlelit windows that seem to say “welcome, come in from the cold” or “here is light to help you on your way.” Why is light so important and cheering? Maybe because we live in a world of darkness and sin. But “be of good cheer, the Light has overcome the world.”
Work and fun
We are finishing up the end of year programs at church with the Sunday School Class performing their Christmas Cantata last week. They sang with great joy and enthusiasm and Dick and I were so proud of them. We have enjoyed helping and filling in for Sunday School. The choir has been working on the special for Sunday and once again I marvel how God can take various voices blending them into one. Just amazing.
I marvel how God can take various voices blending them into one
Dick replaced an overhead light in the pantry so I can see better now, we had a young family over for breakfast after church on Sunday, haven’t even begun thinking about Christmas for our family or ourselves yet, and have decided that, “that’s okay.” What gets done, gets done. I do need to bake cookies for a special order tomorrow and that will get done.
We had a “shop and sing” Friday night at the bookstore and had a grand time singing Christmas Carols, and laughing, and spilling coffee, and laughing, and eating, and laughing. “A merry heart doeth good like a medicine” says Proverbs and that refers to a cure. Laughter is good for the soul and for health. May we laugh more.
Old friends
Did I tell you that I had recently been thinking of Mr. Rutherford, a former customer at the diner, and prayed that if he was still alive God might have him stop to say hi. And last week, he stopped. He turned 90 in October, looks great, and we tried to catch up on the five years since we had closed the diner. God is so good in answering even a prayer of seeing someone. How grateful I am for that time with Mr. Rutherford.
Well, it has been twenty-five years since my cancer surgery and recovery for which I am thankful for the direction and counsel I received during that time. It was a long and arduous journey restoring my immune system but certainly worth the time and effort. I feel like much has been accomplished in those years and I have Dick, my family, and God to thank. They stood by me and encouraged me to keep fighting for health.
they stood by me and encouraged me to keep fighting for health
I unpacked the collection of angels, a variety of bells, and the wooden blocks that the grandchildren play with when they visit. I arranged them on the mantle and the blocks spell “It’s A Wonderful Life.” Each time I listen to the tinkle of one of the bells, I am reminded that “every time a bell rings, an angel gets it’s wings” from that very movie. Such treasures we have in movies, songs, and Christmas memories.
Well, Christmas is almost here and the celebration of the birth of Jesus will resonate once again throughout the land. May yours be “Merry and Bright,” and “A Wonderful Life.” Love, Sharon