The Rejoy of Little Things

Like melt in your mouth

Christmas treats

With a good appetite.

Enjoying a beautiful sunset

With out drugs.

Sighing over the sparkle

Of Christmas without tears.

The wonder of fresh snowflakes

Without a chill.

The comfort of a warm bed

With no fever.

The solace of a hand to hold

With no pain.

The miracle of being in this moment

Without fear.

And looking to the future

With hope.

Sharing Holiday Cheer

At Goby's...

Happy New Year's early!

Belated Gift

The Flu

Running through the family

Like the Christmas Spirit.

Sharing germs

With Holiday cheer.

May the New Year

Find us all happy

And Healthy!

A Brown December

Nothing to cover

The dirty clothes

Of Fall.

The decaying leaves

The bare branches

The dead stems

All still on display

While waiting patiently

For its winter wardrobe.

End of December

Clouds forming

Layers of grey.

Fingertips of sun

Splaying through

The dark of December.

Albertville

The hunting gathering instinct

Of our ancestors kicks in

At the Mall.

Zeroing in on the beautiful plumage

My eyes follow the green and blues

Amid the camouflage.

Closing in on my prey

I pounce on the price tag

Snag the prize

And head off with my trophy

To be mounted on the closet hangers.

Another successful safari.

Thanks Maggie and Dave and Bob.

Merry Christmas

And Happy New Year!

Holiday Flower Show

at McNeely Conservatory

Christmas Eve

I still see Christmas

Through a child's eyes.

The magical sparkle

Of Christmas lights

And tinsel on the tree.

Remembering the ride

Through the dark to grandma's.

The air seemed to shimmer

And the stars were touched

With dreams of Santa.

The adults swirled around

The orbit of a child's world

Filled with wonder

And anticipation.

The clink of glasses

The crunch of cookies

The joy of laughter

All mingled with

Silent Night

To create the music

Of the evening

To create the memories

That are Christmas.

Time Flies

It's hard to believe

It's almost Christmas.

It was just the 4th of July.

It's hard to imagine

All we've been through

In the last 6 months.

I'm looking forward

To a new beginning

In January

Like turning the calendar

And having a fresh new page.

Less dates with appointments

And Doctors

No journal

Of side effects and cures

Just wide open spaces

With days to fill in.

Lessons

Maybe I did learn something

But it's not like

I couldn't have

Read a self help book.

Maybe I did learn patience

But it would have been

A lot easier to just stand in line.

Maybe I did learn empathy

But watching

The Hallmark Channel

Would have been more fun.

Maybe I did learn

To appreciate things more

But a nice church hymn

Would have been simpler.

Maybe the path you're on

Leads you to where you are

But sometimes

A shortcut would be nice.

Wonderful Wednesday
Happy Vacation!

Prescription

I don't know if the Doctors
Really don't know
Or just don't want to tell you,
But I'm hoping
They are at least
Aware
What the side effects may be.

Waiting in December

Waiting for the sun to come up
Waiting for the class to arrive
Waiting for their heads to clear of Santa dreams
Waiting for the them to pay attention
Waiting for 2:35
Waiting for my appointment
Waiting to go home
Waiting for the sun to set
Waiting to start over again.

Sunshine on My Shoulders...

Degrees of warmth

Heating up

My trembling fingers.

Touching my toes

Smiling down

And brightening the room

Shimmering in

And lighting

My soul.

White Christmas?

A light dusting of snow,

Like frosting

On the gingerbread houses,

Makes it look a lot more

Like Christmas.

Friday

End of week
End of year
End of line
Wish it was the
End of treatment.

Christmas Treats

Though I still can't stomach
Coke in a can
And I haven't
Been up to a Mancini's steak
There's something about
Christmas cookies
That even tempts me.

Christmas Programs

Weeks of practice
Learning words and actions
Where to be and how to sing.
All worth while
When the stars are hung
And the Kindergarten angels sing.

Letting Go

Just let it go,
Like a balloon
Floating who knows where.
It will reach it's destination
Though it may not be
Where I planned.

Pleasant Dreams

A new pillow

To cradle my neck

As I learn to sleep

On my back.

A new pillow

To give me good dreams

And give me something

To look forward to.

A new pillow

To relax my body

And release my mind

To the healing of sleep.

A Rambling Road

You never know

Where the journey

Will lead you.

You can prepare and pack.

You can imagine and worry.

You can project to protect.

But it's only

In looking back

That it starts to make sense.

Like seeing the X

"You are here" spot

In context with the whole map.

Winter Sun

My 4:00 Appointments

And the winter solstice

Are playing havoc

With my sunshine.

So I'll have to

Soak up the sun

At my window

On a sunny Saturday

And make it last all week.

Christmas Cards

To send or not to send?

It seems like one more thing

To do at this busy time of year.

But the cards start coming

And I'm reminded of

The the wonderful people

Behind the cards.

And realize it's one very

Important thing to do

Especially at this busy

Time of year,

To acknowledge

These special people

in my life.

Fourth Grade Science

Studying about Matter
You realize what matters.
Something warm
To cover your head
Even if it is a wig.
Something to eat even if you
Have no appetite.
Some one to love
And loves you
Even if some days
It seems like it's only the cat.

On with Oncology

Continuing Herceptin

Every three week

OK

But the sinus problems

That come with it

Not so much.

I literally can't talk about it.

(I lost my voice.)

St Nicholas Day

Even a few gentle flakes
Came down to celebrate.
No coal
Only candy canes.

Merry Monday

Countdown till Christmas
Only 20 days
And the kids are counting!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot

Like Christmas

The snow looks pretty

From my window.

The tree looks stunning

From the couch.

The presents are wrapped

In my dreams.

And my mind is in Florida

On Spring Break!

2nd Anniversary of Angela's 29th

Or the Pink Pub Crawl

Happy Birthday Angela,

You're in the pink!

Looking good and doing fine.

We're looking forward

To celebrating many more

Anniversaries with

Pink Pub Crawls.

TGIF

If my little princess

Doesn't figure out soon

That I'm the queen

I'll have to send her

To the dungeon

Or at least

The Principal's office.

I Love Books

Even when I don't like them.
I love reading them
I love discussing them
I love sharing them.
I always learn something
And it doesn't hurt.