Tag Archives: Valentine’s Day

Unexpected Kindness

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An unexpected act of kindness comes from the heart and is something to treasure. It can lift your spirits, make your heart sing and remind you of all that’s good in the world.

As it did for me. Continue reading →

It’s Official, The Holidays are Over

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Just when I was getting into the holidays, they’re over. Gone in a flash. Before you could say, “Ho, ho, ho,” it was, “Bye, bye, bye.”DSC00005

Yes. The joyous season is over. Want to know how I finally figured it out?  For starters, I just ran out of the last drop of candy cane-scented anti-bacterial hand soap. Ditto for the holly berry wreath soap I kept by the kitchen sink. What’s more, the sugar cookie and fresh balsam scented candles I bought back in October, have met their last match, having melted down to tiny bits of wax.

Now, I may be no Sherlock Holmes, but I deduced the holiday season to be a goner when I used the last paper towel with dancing gingerbread men to wipe up a spill, sneezed into the last tissue from a box bedecked with with purple snowmen, and used the sole remaining snowman and penguin-decorated paper plate to eat the very last of my daughter’s homemade cookies.

Though if truth be told, there’s one more limited edition, pumpkin spice frozen waffle somewhere in the freezer. It’s been in there so long, it’s become embedded in layers of ice, stuck in the freezer’s hinterlands, and just waiting for some poor soul to fetch it from its resting place. Any takers?

The last vestages of the holiday are now all gone.

The last vestiges of the holiday are now all gone.

As for the half-eaten candy cane that lay in a sandwich bag on the kitchen counter for nearly a month, with the expectation that it would be polished off at any given moment, you’ll find it at the bottom of the kitchen trash. Too bad, because I know a certain Cavalier King Charles Spaniel who had his eye on it. (Better luck next year, Henry!)

Yes, the holiday season is over, though, if I’m not mistaken, it is almost Valentine’s Day. Which, as everyone in America knows, leads to Presidents’ Day, followed in March by Cesar Chavez Day (at least, in some states, anyway). And, so on. You get the picture.

Which is why, I’m still saying,

Season’s Greetings!

After all, why confine this festive salutation to just a certain time of year? Holidays abound all year long and, technically, every quarter brings a new season—winter, spring, summer or fall–right? So, why not say “Season’s Greetings” all year long?

If you ask me, everyday should be a reason to celebrate the joy each season brings. Heck, the fact that we’re alive is a good enough reason to be gathering with friends and family, and having good tidings and all that.

Frankly, I don’t need scented soaps and candles, decorations and gingerbread cookies in order to have goodwill toward all. Nor do I need to have a box of tissues, adorned with snowmen, in order to declare, joy to the world.

All I need is fresh air to breathe, a song in my heart, and a skip in my walk. All I need is knowing that it’s a new day and I have family and friends who appreciate me, and I them.

And, taking my cue from one of my favorite Christmas songs, all I need is you, my many readers who indulge me by visiting my blog, and sharing lovely sentiments in your comments.

In other words, there’s no reason to end the holiday spirit just because December has passed, January is on the wane, and the holiday-bedecked products are nowhere to be found. Let’s continue to spread the good cheer!

Let’s remember that life is worth living and that good friends are worth their weight in gold.

And, to all the cynics out there who think I’m just another Pollyanna, no worries. Before you know it, the holiday season will once again be upon us, and you will be once again safe in the cocoon of “holiday” commercialism. Count on that.

For the rest of us, we’re always going to be in one season or another. So, say it with me, and shout it from the rafters:

SEASON’S GREETINGS!

Now tell me. What will you do to keep the holiday spirit going?

One Shot, Two Stories

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Just in time for Valentine’s Day, Monica’s Tangled Web and One Sister’s Rant are joining together to tell two stories, using one photograph.

We’re each posting the same snapshot (courtesy of Keoni Cabral, my friend and photographer extraordinaire) and we’re each writing a different first line. And here’s where you come in.

Readers, we want you to continue the story. Add one sentence to further the plot along and, before you know it, we’ll have one photograph with, what should prove to be, two very distinctive stories.

At the end of the week—or maybe next—we’ll post both stories in their entirety. I’ll post One Sister’s Rant story and you’ll need to head over to Bella’s blog to check out Monica’s Tangled Web story. Won’t that be cool??

This fun exercise is the brainchild of  Cathy Kozak, from While the Dervish Dances. Here are her instructions:

  1. Visit the comment section.
  2. Check your place in the story by reading others’ comments first, each of which will contain a sentence.
  3. Be sure to number your comment and add a sentence of your own that propels the story forward. Make sure you read the comments/sentences others have left before yours, to ensure a logical link.

We encourage you to contribute to the story here and to the story on One Sister’s Rant. Contribute as often as you like!

Tell your friends to contribute, too! Tweet, Facebook or post to whatever social media tool you have. We want this to be as long and involved and as fun as possible–and we can’t do it without you, so spread the news!

Bella and I can’t wait to see what, collectively, we all come up with. Without further ado, on your mark, get set—GO!

The First Sentence:

1. On a misty February morning, barely a week before Valentine’s Day, Charlie opened the back door to let the cat out, then boarded his jeep and drove away.

Your turn!