Happy New Year!

New Year's Day Orchid opening... a good sign...!



The New Year, here, entered gently... with skies not quite completely overcast, in shades of shell blue and tarnished silver... and breaking light softly gilding the tops of everything, enhancing the previously absent greens...

Last night was a "blue moon", and though the cloud cover and icy rain prevented us from viewing it, when at last we made our way to bed, the blanketed sky glowed an odd blue... as if the moon were saying: "Here! I'm up here! Thanks for checking! I celebrate, too!"

We turned down several parties in favor of a family evening in town; the four of us. We got tickets to a show; Young Frankenstein, the Broadway musical production of a family cult favorite film, in the Opera House. The Kennedy Center offered all ticket holders an after party with Champagne, party horns, swing music, and little one's favorite moment of the evening-- a balloon drop.





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On the way home, all agreed to my suggestion (yay!) to stop at a family owned diner in my old stomping ground, for breakfasts, providing the tiny place's ten booths held a vacancy for us, and that it wasn't too smokey. We scored a table right away, the new proprietors, the original owners' grandchildren, had turned it to a smoke free restaurant, and a very merry time was had by all; western omelettes for Mom and Dad, burgers and fries for the kids, with the patties cooked carefully on foil for us thus ensuring all food allergies for our two were safely avoided.

As I cooked our late breakfast ("second breakfast"- yes, at times we ARE hobbits in a hobbit hole!)at home this morning, or I should say, this afternoon, it struck me that I'd not even contemplated any New Years resolutions at all. But as I serenely puttered away in the kitchen, making everyone their favorites and requests, some came to me sincerely and easily.

They may seem too easy or too vague, and I won't attempt to add shading and detail for you-- not to be evasive. It's just that the details wouldn't mean much.

I resolve in 2010, to look at things in a different way, to try to see the other angle, from a position of peaceful determination, to allow myself to be enlightened, to in this way, hopefully, let go of the other types of determination. The one's that've had me stuck.

I resolve to look at and to SEE my family, my children, my marriage, my husband, my house, my work, my aspirations, my goals, my talents, my SELF-- DIFFERENTLY. It has already begun. And though I know resolutions are made to be broken, I am not holding myself under law, here. Am only deciding to live, even if only a little, differently. Things will happen. Our futures will change. Whether a little or a lot.

The entire month of December, the word EPIPHANY followed me, like an angel trying to ring a bell and get his wings. Now January is here. The bell has rung. There is no unringing it. This New Year. Ringing it in... is done.

Happy New Year, everyone.

xo