Chapel of Hope Stories

Dear Reader:

Today is “Double-Digit” Day- 10…Christmas is gathering speed on this special day… until it rushes by on double day 25! Christmas is almost two weeks away….deep breath! We got this! 🙂

The main thing to remember is leave enough time to see just how amazing life can be if we learn to define “amazing” in the daily observations of life. Here are  a couple of my own personal examples from yesterday…incidents that made me pause, take a photo, and then smile at the world!

As I was wrapping presents yesterday morning I walked by my new Sammy the Cardinal suet cage and the sweetest little bird had stopped by for a bite to eat. It was as if it sensed my presence on the other side of the window inside…but instead of flying off…comically it turned and gave me the cutest profile shot ….as if saying “This is my best side.” (Of course I am eagerly waiting for the moment the real Sammy the Cardinal stops by…what a photo that will be! )

Sunday when Eva Cate was helping me decorate “The Happy Room” she must have found “Little Rabbit” in one of the front table drawers. *(You have seen this rabbit “model” occasionally on the first day of different months in the blog post)

It wasn’t until Sunday night when I went to retrieve the remote to change channels…that I saw it. Eva Cate had placed “Little Rabbit” on “Donkey“…my one-eared, one leg shorter, Christmas gift from my own childhood. It has more than a  little wear and tear on it…but each year I find myself unable not to put it out again…turning the one good-ear profile outward and balancing the legs so the donkey can stand without falling.

I broke out laughing when I saw “Little Rabbit” sitting on Donkey’s back…as if it was getting a free lift to the manger to see Baby Jesus…and there is no doubt in my mind…that the Baby would love “Little Rabbit” too!

Finally…late yesterday afternoon I finally lugged the bag of clothes/shoes I was leaving at Goodwill to the trunk of the car and dropped the bag off there. That was literally a “load” off my check-off list to do yesterday.

As I was coming back into the neighborhood…the moon was starting to emerge…and suddenly I braked…for a second it looked like the famous Star in the East  was shining over  one neighborhood a couple of blocks away. As I drove closer…it was a star high in the air…but it was a huge decoration…hung by wires. Amazing! It just made me smile!

So until tomorrow…There has not been a day since I retired that I haven’t pinched myself in happiness at having the freedom finally to discover natural hidden treasures in life that I missed for far too long.

“Today is my favorite day” Winnie the Pooh

*And speaking of getting closer….Anne’s Open House Art Exhibit is this weekend…Check out times and make time to attend- lots of fun!

Dear Reader:

If you think you just recently saw this bright visual quote in an earlier post…you aren’t hallucinating and I am not suffering from dementia…at least yet 🙂

It is just that when you read something like this saying (in the title photo)…most of us simply nod our heads and then promptly forget it. But when you experience the reality of it upclose and personal…it sticks with you a long time.

Okay…here’s the story. Mandy dropped Eva Cate off at the house before church service yesterday to spend the day with Boo…helping me trim the tree and finish decorating the rooms…a grandmother-granddaughter ‘girl day‘. I don’t know who was more excited…all I can say is..I sure was!

As children get older…and more experiences and activities come into their lives…it gets harder and harder to chisel out special time with each grandchild. So when it happens…it is near miraculous. And…that brings us back around to the title saying:

“Sometimes miracles are simply good people with kind hearts.”

I experienced someone just like this yesterday..my amazing pastor, Jeff Kackley, as well as , his daughter Locke.

The church service was wonderful  and Eva Cate is at the age now…that she realizes she can read and follow along ..sing hymns and she was really into the sermon and the thoughts behind it with lots of questions…in other words…she is growing up.

Many of you ‘congregationalists’ made Eva Cate feel like a celebrity when you recognized her and called her by name…*from blog recognition growing up in blog posts over (almost) a decade.

After we left service we went to Groucho’s …her favorite ‘stomping’ ground, because Eva Cate loves putting their special sauce on everything she eats ..from the sandwich to the chips to the pickle. We got there early (which was a blessing) since people were already lining up for Summerville’s annual Christmas parade… which didn’t even start until 2 and it was 11:30!

It wasn’t until we left Groucho’s that I realized something important was amiss…my iPhone! In the restaurant I thought I had just left it in the car but it was not there…I cleaned out my coat pockets, we looked under car seats, went back in Groucho’s  -talked to our waitress…nothing.

Finally I decided that the only place left was the sanctuary…I must have left it under my seat when I gathered up everything to leave. So back we went….The choir was holding an extra practice to get ready for the upcoming Christmas events so we “snuck” in the side door and looked under our seats…nothing.

I then went to the vestibule…thinking it was turned into Lost and Found...nothing. Then we went to the office where Jeff and a committee was meeting in the back room but no iPhone was on any desk.

(*I must admit I was starting to swallow a little harder as the impact of what this potential loss meant…no pictures for the blog post, no calls coming in or out, texts or emails…the horrible domino effect was building in my mind.)

I wrote Jeff a note about the situation, placed it on his desk…when suddenly the door opened and the meeting was over. Eva Cate and I went in and I tapped Jeff on the shoulder and inquired about the phone…nothing had been turned into him…but in spite of my protests to the contrary…he went back in the sanctuary with me…looking under the row of seats and inside the side pockets in the chairs…finding nothing.

We went back out in the vestibule…nothing…I know it had been a long morning/early afternoon and Jeff (and his beautiful daughter Locke) were  ready to get home…but instead he asked where I had parked that morning…(after he had gone through my car inch by inch… now parked by the sanctuary.)

I pointed out where I had parked earlier…but begged him not to bother…he had done more than enough-I could go check it out…I would drive the car around there and look…but off he and Locke went. Eva Cate and I got back in the car and started up and around the parking lot…as I made the curve I saw him waving the iPhone triumphantly! (I felt like weeping for joy I was so relieved!)

I do believe ‘miracles sometimes are simply good people with kind hearts‘ like Jeff and his daughter Locke. Still…there was one more unpredictable factor in this situation…not so easily explained.

The iPhone must have fallen on the ground beside the car….either getting in or out of the car-the “miracle” is…the cars on that side of the parking spaces were in close quarters …so close, in fact, that when I went to back out I had to pull up and maneuver in and out several times. How I missed not running over the iPhone was, is, and will continue to be a separate unexplained “miracle” in this story.

So until tomorrow….Never forget that miracles are not limited to the inexplicable...but miracles truly can be really really good people with the kindest of hearts! My hero-Jeff Kackley… who gives the phrase “going an extra mile” … an extra mile! 🙂

Before and After Eva Cate helped me decorate the Christmas tree…

This year we spray painted the old Halloween “tree” stand white and put all the family Christmas cards and photos on it…making our own ‘family tree.’

*Of course Eva Cate couldn’t resist teasing Boo Boo when she found my benchmark birthday white hair/glasses mask from my party back in September…The mask definitely looks better on her…even with her imitating me being “down in the back!” 🙂

By the time I got back home around 6:30 last evening…the town of Summerville was sparkling in the lights…I took time to stop at Hutchinson Square and take a few pictures before heading home.

…And my favorite building…Guerin’s Pharmacy… was all lit up…one of the oldest historical landmarks on town square…this ‘drug store’ still offers the best hotdogs (you can add condiments to them yourself) cherry cokes, and coke floats! A step back into simpler times.

***Guerin’s is the oldest pharmacy in South Carolina-* Quick History

Guerin’s Pharmacy, located in downtown Summerville, is the oldest pharmacy in South Carolina, having operated as an independent pharmacy since 1871. A pharmacist from Charleston, Dr. Schwettman, moved his business to Summerville during the civil war.

Upon returning to Summerville after completing his service to his country, Dr. Henry C. Guerin purchased the Summerville side of the business and Dr. Schwettman returned to Charleston. Dr. Joseph A. Guerin, son of Dr. Henry C. Guerin, took over ownership upon the death of his father. Dr. Herbert F. Dunning worked with Dr. Joseph A. Guerin from whom he purchased the business. Charles H. Dunning, Jr. began working for his uncle and Dr. Joseph A. Guerin at the age of 12. He purchased the business from his uncle’s estate in 1975.

After his death in 2014, his daughter, Barbara A. Dunning, is the owner and pharmacist in charge. Working alongside her is Joshua Kister, Pharm D, who has been with Guerin’s since 2009. In September 2017, Guerin’s was bestowed a historical South Carolina marker by the Summerville Preservation Society. It is located outside of the pharmacy on the Richardson side of the building.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

Dear Reader:

I happened to be skimming through Christmas ideas on the internet and suddenly there was an announcement about Kennebunkport…that the charming little town had been recognized by HGTV for being one of the top Christmas towns in America because of their “Christmas Prelude?”

“What is that?” I thought…and suddenly memories of visiting Kennebunkport last summer came rushing back in my mind…touring the Bush Compound on a windy gray day with big waves, traveling up Cadillac Mountains, and later having supper with wonderful friends of Anne’s…I loved Kennebunkport. So I took the time to see what “Christmas Prelude” was all about…

Kennebunkport’s “Christmas Prelude” is a magical seaside holiday celebration ( held the first two weeks in December) and a great way to kick off the Christmas season. Prelude will remind you of Christmas’ of the past, when the whole town is transformed with bright lights, bows and boughs and everyone comes together to celebrate this festive time.

The Christmas Prelude celebration began in 1982 and has since become one of the most popular annual events in Kennebunkport.

Visitors come from all over the world to take part in festive activities for all ages. The celebrations start off with the Dock Square tree lighting, where everyone gathers around as carolers take the stage to sing our favorite Christmas tunes.

Santa arrives in a real old-fashioned lobster boat and the tree topper for the town’s Christmas tree is always (what else?) a lobster.

There is wine-tasting at the big white house, parades, sleigh rides and this year they added a night of Friendology…bring a friend…human or pet…and enjoy Christmas with your best friend…ending up at the charming store known as “Happy Nest.”

Congratulations to Kennebunkport…but you know…I love Summerville at Christmas and can just ride around at night for hours looking at the lowcountry’s decorations.

*In fact today is Summerville’s annual Christmas parade. Our official kick-off to the holiday season…all the lights in town come on, along with our town Christmas tree lights and they will stay on throughout the festive Christmas season…oh how I love lights!

Speaking of…that is what I gave Vickey for her birthday yesterday…a solar  mason jar bottle, with an added Christmas ornament I found- the lights shine at night beautifully- twinkling fairy lights.

In my card I told her that December 7 is usually remembered for the bombardment of Pearl Harbor… throwing the United States into WWII…but I think FDR was referring to Vickey’s birthday…when he talked about a “day that will live in infamy.” 🙂

Since Vickey was working all  day until 5…I took supper also…the golf club had given her a party which was so nice…but she said she was ready to climb in her jammies, eat supper, and fall fast asleep…it had been a busy day! Happy Birthday Vickey…my super hero wonderful neighbor!

Now let me show you Vickey’s Christmas decorations…her home is just beautiful…all the time…but especially at Christmas!

As I crossed the street the lights (up and down the road from Christmas trees in front windows) were starting to come on…including mine. What is it about watching decorations inside from outside that makes us feel so happy and lucky at the same time?

One unique factor about Christmas in the lowcountry is the diversity of temperatures and sometimes unusual seasonal blooms …I took this picture in Vickie’s back yard and had to laugh..summer wild flowers blooming alongside her Japanese Maple.

So until tomorrow…It is at this time of the year that I am so thankful for friends, past, present, and those yet to meet…but most especially best.  They all become an integral part of our Christmas memories.

 “Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

Don’t forget! Next weekend is Anne’s (and her Art Ya’s big art show…with wonderful refreshments, live music, and beauty surrounding one and all. Plan to come and relax from the busyness of the holidays.

Dear Reader:

Yesterday was such a fun, creative day that I thought to myself …I wished every day could be filled with such anticipation, along with opportunities to re-create decor using last year’s decorations but rearranging everything differently.

Besides the fun of decorating…every phone call was about something good, texts even better…all the news in my world filled me with such happiness. Let me give you some examples.

I found some old decorations from a few years back in a drawer I hardly ever open. I decided to re-arrange and make something new from old. For example…putting an old Santa clay figurine in a cotton wreath…so it looks like he is encircled in snow.

Later in the day I looked out and saw a ‘Sammy the Cardinal’ suet cage hanging out on a hook from my front den window. My neighbor, Jane, had seen it at a store and thought it would be the perfect early Christmas gift for me to enjoy. She was so right…so cute and I can hardly wait for the real Sammy to land there and get his picture made at his suet cage! 🙂

Walsh texted and then called to let me know that Rutledge had won first place in the first grade Reindeer Race (all the first grade boys participated in this race)! I don’t know who was more excited…Walsh, Mollie or Rutledge…unless it was me. A proud grandmother. Last year he won first place in the kindergarten race…that boy can run.

I told Walsh I would have to get him a red glowing nose…since he lead the pack of first grade “reindeer” throughout the entire race…a real Rudolph in the making! 🙂 Maybe one day he can guide Santa’s sleigh!

When I opened one drawer all of Joan Turner’s original Christmas cards were lying inside…they are so whimsical and adoring…I immediately found a photo hanger and put them all on it. Part of my annual Christmas anticipation is waiting to see Joan’s latest Christmas card painting…a tradition now in my personal Christmas celebration.

Cicero alluded to the fact that “We are not here for ourselves”…inferring, of course, that we are here to help others. And isn’t that what Christmas is all about?

So until tomorrow…At this time of year the term ‘Christmas miracle’ can sometimes be over-used… but simply put…Can’t we all be a miracle if we choose to help others.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

* This is my neighbor Vickie’s birthday so I can going to sneak over and leave some surcies for her while she works at Miler today. She is the most giving, wonderful neighbor one could have…a great friend. I am not supposed to know it is her birthday so SHHHH!

Dear Reader:

Yesterday I had a wonderful surprise visit from the best Ho Ho Ho personality ….Jo Jo Jo! As I pulling into my driveway I saw a car was already parked there and then I saw Jo starting down the porch steps. I beeped, stopped, and quickly parked. One never wants to miss a visit from Jo…her quick wit is legendary!

She came bearing a gift ….the cutest ornament! “Sammy the cardinal” inside a decorated glass ball with a candle that stays lit with a battery package attached…just beautiful. Jo saw it and she said she knew I had to have it…the last “Sammy” tree ornament! It was meant to be!

I showed Jo my tree with just the lights and Ruthie the angel…”Yours will be the very first ornament on the tree”...and it is!

I had just gotten back from the movies….“It’s a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood“…I loved the movie. K.C. and I met there and walked away excitedly talking about the quotes and thoughts from the film that moved each of us.

I will have to say that at first…the movie catches one a little off-guard…it takes a few minutes to figure out the initial scenes and how they connect to the movie…but then from that point on…the deceiving simplicity of a children’s show grows into adult truths that demand new ways of thinking…which Mr. Rogers quietly dispenses in slow snippets throughout the rest of the show.

Tom Hanks said he watched endless hours of the children interacting with Mr. Rogers on his show… while working on mimicking  his voice, gestures, and his deliberate study in pauses.

The plot intentionally moves slowly…and sadly for some spectators maybe too slowly…but Tom Hanks felt that a fast plot would be against everything Mr. Rogers encompassed…compassion, listening, studying facial expressions and most importantly listening… as if that child was the only child on earth.

After watching many programs in preparation for the role,  Hanks noticed an important characteristic of Mr. Rogers- patience. Hanks said that sometimes while waiting on a child (live on Mr. Roger’s show ) to answer a question that Mr. Rogers had slowly and kindly asked.. the response time would be quite lengthy…to the point of becoming unsettling and embarrassingly awkward.

Yet Mr. Rogers never blinked.  He understood children so well. He understood that most adults never give children the amount of response time needed to deliberate and concentrate on an answer to a question.

In daily life Mr. Rogers would observe harried mothers yelling at their child to tell them what he/she wanted for dinner. When the mother wouldn’t get a response in 3 seconds…she would yell that she then was picking…call out something off the top of her head for dinner…and then couldn’t understand why the child was upset and felt completely left out of the decision-making opportunity. Children like to think about a question before responding…yet too many adults overlook this basic need in order to beat the daily clock at work or at home.

Listening...my word of the year this year and every year. After seeing this movie…I realize just how important it is to give someone (you are talking to) your complete attention with no interruptions. Fred Rogers made every child feel like he/she was the most precious person in the world…and in his eyes …they were! Children don’t easily forget adults like that…

At the end of the movie…as Mr. Rogers is playing the piano some more expressions of his are quietly quoted…I noticed no one got up out of their seats…like they were mesmerized and just waiting for another gold nugget of wisdom to appear.

In this fast world we live in today…we want instant gratification constantly and quickly…like “prime” amazon orders delivered in two days,  “dubious” knowledge at our finger tips, cars delivered to our homes, as well as, furniture, take-out or even groceries…Mr. Rogers tells us to stop our busyness and listen to those around us.

Give people a chance to share their opinions before enforcing our ideas on them.

So until tomorrow…It is time to deliberately slow down and form deeper relationships with our families and friends. Give ‘time’ and ‘listening’ gifts this Christmas…the gift that will keep on giving…and always be remembered.

“Today is my favorite day” Winnie the Pooh

Purple pansies…a favorite of mine!

Dear Reader:

What a happy surprise I had yesterday! I was piddling around trying to decide where to start with the Christmas decorations…and I had a text from Luke. He had picked me up a Christmas tree and was on the way over!

I had asked him earlier if he might be able to help me again this year with picking out a tree. (Last year my foot was still up in the air…literally! Luke picked out a beautiful tree for me and put it up.)

He replied…”Sure…no problem.” And suddenly there he was…the most perfect Christmas Tree- a Fraser Fir. Just the perfect size (6′) to stand on the long wooden coffee table…giving Ruthie, the rag doll angel, enough room to look down on all of us once again!

When we finished getting the lights on (We beat some kind of record getting the tree up and the lights on- half an hour…can you believe it- every strand worked the first time out?)…A true Christmas Miracle! 🙂

I so badly wanted to send the picture of the tree with Ruthie on top… to Gloria Houston, the author of The Perfect Christmas Tree, like I had done for so many years in the past.  *I still find it hard to realize Gloria died three years ago from a rare cancer. I miss her texts, emails, and letters so.

Still, as long as, Ruthie, the angel, presides over my Christmas…all is right with the world and Gloria and her wonderful stories are never far away. They still bring joy to every girl and boy…and adult!

Tree: As Luke brought the tree in… with all the outdoorsy smell of the woods…I stood there for a few minutes just marveling at its beauty before we placed Ruthie on top. What is it about a tree that makes us feel so happy and peaceful simultaneously?

I thought about it a few moments and came to this conclusion…it brings back symbols of the ‘Tree of Life’ and how the world came into being with God beaming down. It also represents the family tree and tradition. Traditions are stories handed down by family from one generation to another. The Christmas tree begs for stories to be told around it of the family past and the family present on the holidays through memory stories.

Lights: Like I mentioned earlier… every single strand of lights came on and not one was tangled…unbelievable! Luke, the cutest elf around, got up at the top and I grabbed the cords and we were finished in mere minutes… amid my excited applause.

Instead of just throwing on decorations this year…I have decided to wait and just enjoy the tree and lights for awhile. The simplicity of the tree with white fairy lights makes the Happy Room appear magical. These are the lights of happiness that one day will lead me home..amid twinkling stars. Lights are our path finders in life.

Ornaments: As soon as I break down and start putting ornaments on the tree…the personality of the tree changes and allows my personality to shine through choices of my favorite ornaments, photos, and memories that I wish to share with viewers. A lifetime of memories and adventures denoted on the branches of the Christmas tree….my latest, of course, are my Maine moose. Thanks again Sherry!

Gifts: The idea of gifts, of course, began with The Christmas Story and still thrives in today’s modern world. Every year as I get older… my idea of a gift changes…giving gifts to family and friends make me happy…but the only gifts I enjoy are ‘time‘ gifts when family and friends take time off during the busy Christmas season to be together…those are the very best gifts of all!

Another lesson age is teaching me…is about waiting time. When we are stuck in a situation…like the traffic line I was in about 5:30 yesterday afternoon…the immobilization allowed me to take this photo of the most beautiful ending to a wonderful day. What a gift waiting time gave me!

So until tomorrow…as I pulled into my driveway…for the first time in the Christmas season I got to see my tree and lights and Ruthie as I climbed out of my car…my home was transformed…It looked cozy and magical all  at the same time.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

Please keep Hailey, Libby’s granddaughter, in your prayers today. She is having surgery on a broken ankle…screws put in to hold it…the healing process will take a minimum of two to three months. *Hailey dances with a traveling dance company, loves it, and is so sad she will miss this season…but our hope is her ankle will be 100% well when she returns. Thank you.

Dear Reader:

Yesterday I kept discovering items that I thought lost…but now found… and even items I never knew were lost.

For example…while starting to pull out Christmas decorations…I came across a pretty little red box.

“Oh this will be perfect to put some Christmas bows and hair clips in for the granddaughters.”

I threw out all the old tissue paper…and then I heard it…the softest little ping. I stooped down and picked up one small wad of red tissue paper…and felt something inside. As I unwrapped it …there was the most beautiful Baby Jesus carved from a nut lying in a half-shell . Startling creative and exquisite.

I thought to myself…“I was getting ready to throw it out and if I hadn’t sensed something inside the wadded tissue…and heard the softest of pings I would have inadvertently thrown away the most precious little gift…how  sad it would have been.”

*Because of its size I knew it would fit perfectly on the little fir tree Mollie gave me last week…and it did…all nestled in the top branch! Home at last…not to miss another Christmas.

The boys left this book at my house last week and I hate to admit it…but I have had the most fun sitting in the recliner hunting for all the different Christmas objects hidden on each page. What fun!

It was only later in the day (yesterday) that I had to laugh at man’s daily paradox…or at least mine! I can find miniature objects hidden in a book but miss, I mean literally be blinded, to the whole big picture of life in reality.

I stopped by Tuesday Morning to see if I could find two tall candles or objects to add to the mantel this year. (Each year I like to add one new ‘something.’) I found it …two tall wooden/metallic angels…perfect!

(*I must wait until Luke comes later this week to help me place my wreath and other decor on the tall mantel  but here is a picture of the new angel(s)…I love it!)

As I pulled into the driveway…I glanced at the time and knew I would have to hurry to carry everything in….take a shower, grab a quick bite of lunch, and then head over to Mt. Pleasant for a tea for grandparents at Rutledge’s school.

It was while I was quickly eating lunch that I blinked and then blinked again as I stared out the den window. Where were all the leaves from the Bradford Pear?...Gone…all gone! The yard was clear and clean of all clutter.

At first I thought it was my elf neighbor, Vickie, whose yard is so pristine… you could eat off of it…but she assured me it wasn’t her. She had a doctor’s appointment yesterday morning about her shoulder so she was gone, never saw anyone…but she couldn’t rake if she wanted to… I could eliminate her.

I wasn’t thinking about Michael…because he got hurt at work a couple of weeks before Thanksgiving and had let me know he would be out of commission for awhile. I reassured him all was well…just take care and get himself well.

When I called Michael this time, however,…he finally admitted he was the elf using his magical leaf blower/mower, bagger. Ho Ho Ho! Santa Claus had come and cleaned everything in the yard and I was running around so much that I had almost missed seeing the whole thing….a beautiful manicured lawn right in front of my eyes.

Before and After:

The grandparent tea was conveniently placed in the media center with desserts and tea….and also  a book fair just happened to be going on in there too…so we could buy our grandchild a book or a book for his class. Smooth…very smooth.

But hugs from your grandchildren are all we grandparents want ..plus I discovered I was on the “Golden Grandparent” Recognition Wall for helping sponsor something at the beginning of the year. (forgotten now what it was?) Too funny! What we do for love!

So until tomorrow….Christmas, love, hugs, and elves are all around us…we must never get too busy to see their good deeds of giving! We can miss Christmas if we are blinded by the mundane and busyness of life.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

Dear Reader:

I read somewhere recently that the first thing to go (in our memory) in conversations is proper nouns. Oh…how true!

Lately I feel like I play a game of charades in normal conversation trying to detour around the loss of memory for a particular name while sending out clues to my (undoubtedly bored listeners) to help me pull it out.

Recently…I had seen a ‘special’ with a favorite actress of mine (I hadn’t seen in quite awhile) …and for the life of me I could not remember her name…but I kept remembering parts/roles she had played in different movies … all completely disconnected.

So the conversation went something like this….”Oh you know who it is? She talked about her hair looking like a football in that sweet movie made in the south…and then she had a romantic relationship with an older man ….oh what was that actor’s name… I loved him…he died fairly recently with a bad heart…and oh…when she was younger she could fly?”

I was met with blank stares and shaking heads…until finally one listener yelled out “The Flying Nun”  and suddenly everyone started remembering…”the football hairdo came from Steel Magnolias and James Garner was the romantic interest in Murphy’s Romance.

It is truly exhausting what we have to do to get back to that one proper name that remains elusive. SALLY FIELD!!! Whew! ‘Good Grief Charlie Brown!

If the Ya’s are at the beach and one of us is struggling with a lost name…we just reassure each other that the name (inside an aging neuron) will circle back around about 2 a.m. in the morning and bingo…the name comes back…more often than not.

Yesterday I had two more memories associated with the beauty/fun and usefulness of falling leaves… but I completely forgot to add them to yesterday’s post.

In the south…where we rarely get snow…we  can’t make snow angels…but we can make leaf angels. At this time of the year all it takes is a heavy-layered yard filled with leaves and the leaf angels appear bringing much fun and joy.

This brought back another memory….my Aunt Eva married into the Peden family…around Simpsonville…the Pedens were known for having all boys…and lots of them…but fortunately by the next generation I got a Peden girl cousin named Dianne.

When we would go to visit Aunt Eva in autumn Dianne would come over with wax paper and a huge cookie sheet pan which she promptly waxed until that cookie sheet could fly.

We would get at the top of a piney hill…push off…the two of us fitting snugly on the cookie sheet… holding on for dear life. We flew over those pine needles…the bad part was that the conclusion of the ride usually ended with a crash into a pine tree that sent us tumbling for yards farther down the hill…but oh what fun! Necessity is the mother of invention…no snow…no problem!

Grandmother always had a southern cedar tree for her Christmas tree and all the ornaments on it were homemade….like seen in the title photos….acorn and leaf angels and pine cone angels. She always made a centerpiece from one small piece of wood cut  like a yule log…with added berries, cypress sprays, cones, and candles.

Cypress trees smell really piney (so good!)…like the outside has come in. I still associate that smell with grandmother’s house at Christmas. Yet…as a child it was hard to decorate because of its bushiness and prickliness. It didn’t have individual branches like other trees. I remember my fingers were always sticky from decorating.

Isn’t it strange how I can remember childhood Christmas memories so well and go nuts trying to remember Sally Field’s name? Such is life! 🙂

*One last connection…this time it is the relationship between God and Santa Claus at Christmas. Last evening I got stuck in ( an almost immobile car line) at the outside pharmacy window at CVS. I had to pick up two prescriptions I had run out of and couldn’t put off a day longer.

Suddenly Elvis comes on the radio singing ‘Here Comes Santa Claus’… all jazzed up. I found myself snapping my fingers and bopping my head around.

Suddenly on the last two stanzas I heard Elvis make a connection between God, the Light, and Santa. Don’t ever remember hearing those two verses? But it made me so happy…another reassuring connection between Santa’s role of benevolence… with God’s blessings.

The last two stanzas go:

Here comes Santa Claus, here comes Santa Claus
Riding down Santa Claus Lane

He doesn’t care if you’re a rich or poor boy
He loves you just the same
Santa knows that we’re God’s children
That makes everything right
Fill your hearts with Christmas cheer
‘Cause Santa Claus comes tonight

Well, here comes Santa Claus, here comes Santa Claus
Riding down Santa Claus Lane

He’ll come around when the chimes ring out
It’s Christmas morn again
Peace on Earth will come to all
If we just follow the light
Let’s give thanks to the Lord above
‘Cause Santa Claus comes tonight

‘Cause Santa Claus comes tonight

So until tomorrow…As long as I can still make connections…especially with God…everything is all right in the world.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

*Yesterday I wore my green and gold to honor Coach McKissick. I ran into Belk later in the afternoon and Betty, one of the Belk managers, asked me if I taught in Dorchester Two since she knew Joe Pye, our superintendent, had asked employees to wear green and gold for our winning-est coach in America and the amazing legacy of mentoring so many generations… behind upon his recent death.

I told Betty I was a retired school teacher and neighbor of the McKissicks and wanted to honor his legacy by wearing green and gold. Betty said she had just seen Joan the week before and had asked about Coach McKissick..she loved Joan and all the family.

So we ended up taking a picture (including the Belk gals with a sweet note to Joan from all the Belk employees) thinking of her. I love it when Summerville still retains its small town flavor amid all the growth population.

***Today is my younger brother, David’s birthday. He died way too young (21) but I will always remember his gentleness and kindness and how I loved him then, now, and forever. I miss you David! Happy Birthday!

Dear Reader:

Saturday I teased Kaitlyn and asked her if I could get her photo under the Bradford Pear tree because just a small handful of leaves had fallen, at that point, and I wanted a picture of her with the tree in all its shining glory.

Little did I know how true those words would ring in my prediction!

I saw on the weather channel where Sunday was supposed to be a rainy day…forefront to a cold front entering the low country and I figured I would lose a few leaves to the rain…but nothing prepared me for the sight I saw when I went out on the porch Sunday morning to turn off my lantern/lamp.

I simply gasped! Overnight at least half the leaves from the tree had fallen…it was windy and that, along with the ensuing rain, co-conspired to bring the leaves tumbling down.

Before and After:

I glanced over at my neighbor Vickie’s maple tree and was even more shocked! Hers had slowly started dropping leaves Thanksgiving day and now….gone…completely gone!

The more I looked around the neighborhood….the more unsettling the reality was…beautiful ginkgo’s and maples were now just memories…the fall beauty was gone for another season.

However, there is still much beauty in newly fallen leaves…soon they will darken, crinkle, and crumble…but for the first few hours…they look like gold from a fairy tale book…as in weaving straw into gold.

My child-like imagination has me raking up leaves as fast as I can and putting them in big barrels where they magically transform into gold coins. *Reality…raking up the thousands of leaves off that big Bradford Pear is going to be back-breaking work and no pay.

*(I have long learned not to rush the raking process. It is a lesson in futility if I do…might as well wait until the leaves  all come down and let the leaves enrich the soil for a few days or weeks.)

I also learned something else while watching the wind and rain do its ‘clean-up’ act…stripping leaves from trees. When a large gust of wind  blows and the leaves start dancing as they fall …with some scurrying down Rainbow Road….It reassures me that this act of nature isn’t a destructive ending…but simply a bright new beginning.…and the leaves appear merrily ready and happy to participate.

It is now time to rest…a long-deserved hiatus…so new seeds, underground, will sprout in the spring and green leaves will return to the trees… more beautiful than ever with their white and pink blossoms….fresh and bright. Sleep well autumn.

So until tomorrow….

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

BIG SHOUT-OUT! Christmas Open House

• I hope as many of you living in the low country can make it over to Anne’s house…there will be music, refreshments, and beautiful art pieces to put everyone in the Christmas Spirit! If you can’t make one day…come the next…but  just COME! 🙂 Oh Come All You “Fun-Ful!”  🙂 
• Sneak Peeks of two paintings of Anne’s from photographs from Paris
• 

Dear Reader:

I absolutely love this whimsical painting of Santa Claus paying homage to the Baby Jesus. The question is: Is Santa peeking at Him or peeping at the Christ Baby? Do we try to peep at our presents or peek?

These two words drive me batty when I am trying to decide which to use…I should have done my homework years earlier…and I would have discovered that each is an origin of the other. Simply put…either one is correct.  (I always thought baby chicks “peeped” while we humans “peeked” inside windows or around corners- Who knew?)

The words are similar in meaning. In fact, peep derives from peek. And peek comes from an earlier word (keek) that still exists in  Scottish dialect.

Both have almost exact meanings:

peek: to look through a narrow opening; to look into or out of an enclosed or concealed space; (also) to glance or look furtively at, to pry.

peep: to look through a narrow aperture, as through half-shut eyelids or through a crevice, chink, or small opening into a larger space; (hence) to look quickly or furtively from a vantage point; to steal a glance.

Don’t we hold children ‘hostage’ to the idea that Santa Claus is peeping around looking to see “who’s been naughty or nice?”

Throughout my life I have heard the rather tiring (repeated) discussion about separating Santa Claus from God and the Baby Jesus being born in a manger. It never bothered me as a child and it certainly doesn’t bother me as an adult either…as long as children stay exposed to the true meaning of Christmas… to the scriptural  Christmas Story along with the symbol of Santa as a kind person who loves children and wants them to be good…and happy!

God always tells us there is plenty of room in His Home…and I think a symbol like Santa is more preferable than the terrible misdeeds of too many real humans we read about in the news each day….Santa, to me,  is a fictional version of a loving “Mr. Rogers.” Anytime love is involved…especially for God’s children…I think God is just fine with it.

Magic and old legends should always have their place in children’s lives….to promote imagination! There is plenty of time for stark reality in the world but creativity along with God’s creation produces stories of wonder and awe.

Today is December 1….The Christmas month has officially arrived and I think (besides Santa)…that a rabbit would have been welcomed at the Nativity Scene too. *Jo and Colby...your first-day-of-the-month crystal rabbit wanted to peep/peek and see the Baby Jesus too! 🙂

Don’t forget to say ‘rabbit ”rabbit’ today on the first day of the month…and have a happy happy merry merry month!

So until tomorrow…Never forget Jesus welcomes everyone to the manger… every minute of every hour of every day, month, and year. Come peek at the Baby Jesus and discover what love is all about.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

No need to explain why the Dingle Boys left very happy yesterday and it appears that Rutledge had a ball…literally and emotionally! 🙂

Great Seats! Rutledge…Did you get to see Trevor’s long blond hair flying in the air?

While the boys were gone…the girl cousins (Clemson and USC) kin met for lunch and some shopping…first time the girls had gotten together in a long time…they modeled while Lassie, Doodle, and I gave’em the thumbs up or down on their attire…all up...they are so cute!

Kaitlyn and I got “All In” for Clemson and Kaitlyn looked so pretty under the Bradford Pear…(whose days are numbered…the leaves are starting to fall!)

I hope this month and the holiday season will be the very best for all of you! It’s been a difficult year…I think everyone deserves some extra love this year and promises of hope!

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention another game…THE GAME…the kind that causes heart attacks. My son-in-law John attended Auburn and is a huge Auburn fan along with Mandy (as long as they aren’t playing Clemson 🙂

The family had flown to Huntsville, Alabama to spend Thanksgiving with John’s family, W.T. and Joan…and left very early yesterday morning… just to end up waiting on a plane with mechanical problems.

But somehow they finally flew back into Charleston just in time to make the Auburn-Alabama game….and boy, was it a game! The evening ended with an exhausted…but exhilarated John and Mandy.

Within five minutes after beating Alabama the internet was flooded with t-shirts! Capitalism at is most “athletic” ?  🙂

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