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| victorian decorated for Christmas painting called Christmas Lights |
Christmas 2021
Since I am not one to communicate on Facebook this is my one time to connect with friends and family and reminisce on the past year’s events
Time goes by as fast as Santa makes his trip around the planet. Well time seems to be speeding up and I am slowing down. In the old days Christmas trees went up a week before Christmas and now they are seen the day after Thanksgiving. It is one long holiday from Thanksgiving to Christmas that I love and I continue to celebrate until the 12 days of Christmas are over. I grew up with snow at Christmas and I like snow for the holidays. As a child I would wait and pray for snow. Now I live in a place where it is too warm for snow, but I have my memories.
This year for Thanksgiving I went to Ashland Oregon where Chris’s wife Diane’s brother, mother and daughter live. Courtney, Diane’s daughter and her mate are doctors and they have two energetic very bright sons who are seven and nine. These two boys are also athletic and love soccer. Diane’s brother just retired from a construction business and now he is making furniture. He showed us some of his pieces, beautiful wood and excellent craftsmanship. Ashland is famous for the Shakespeare Theater and it has a beautiful downtown. I looked in every decorated window and poked around in some of the shops. Lot of people about on the day after Thanksgiving.
So what have I been doing this year? Well I went camping twice in June and July with two friends. Did the whole thing with tents, sleeping bags, fires and cooking with our two burner gas stove. We camped on creeks with small waterfalls and deep swimming holes. With the help of my friends I managed to descend and climb the paths that led to the swim holes. From July 20th to September 1st I was with Douglas and Christina staying in my old house on Back Cove. I swam in the cove, painted with friends, saw the art in Rockland, ate lobster, and saw old friends.that came to visit. My cousin David’s son got married at Pemaquid Lighthouse. On the day of the wedding it was hot and humid when I left Waldoboro and cold and foggy at the lighthouse. I wore my raincoat while the others in their formal attire dealt with the climate. It was a small wedding attended by their best friends and a few relatives, I was probably the oldest in the group. Pemaquid is a beautiful place no mater what the weather… and people go there to watch the storms. It was unfortunate that it was foggy for the wedding. One takes chances on outdoor events. They all went off to a place to eat and I assume they had a good time.I am always glad to see David when I go back to Maine, not many of us left in the family.
The next-to-last day in Maine my friend Alice and I went out to Monhegan Island. This island has been a haven for artists for a century. Many famous artist have painted there. Now it is a destination place for tourists. Still there are many artists there. I made a couple of paintings when I got back to Eugene from photos I took. I posted them on my blog spot that shares them on facebook if you are inclined to look them up.
Not all went well on my Maine trip. A few days after I arrived, I came down with a cold. Fortunately it went away in a few days. Then I got Lime disease. I lived on Back Cove for thirty four years and took many ticks off of my body and the dogs and cats and this summer a tick gave me lime. I had to take antibiotics for three weeks. Doug had ablation heart surgery in August. This was to correct his irregular heart beat. He was nervous but all went well.
Last episode of infections was several days after I returned to Eugene I got another cold. This one settled into my bronchial tubes and took three weeks to clear up and I had to take antibiotics again for that. I have been fine since then, I rarely get sick. My pacemaker works fine and I have no aches or pains. I’m slower, don’t have the energy I used to have and I need more sleep. I may be more forgetful but my brain still works. I walk every day, and ride my three wheel bike for exercise. I paint, make jewelry, sew, and read, I am busy all day long. I have been making books as a way of keeping records of my paintings. I have big books of 200 pages, also a book of my Christmas letters with images of winter scenes. I made books of 20 pages that I make on Snap Fish. The titles are: Paintings of Eugene, Paintings of Oregon, Paintings of Maine boats, Favorite paintings, Abstracts, Paintings of Flowers and Vegetables, Paintings of Winter, Rocks and Water, and Dogs in my Life. I wait for a very good sale to order the books and I only order a couple of each because it is expensive.
Life is fulfilling now as it alway has been. I enjoy being a physical being. I get a lot of pleasure from looking at Earth’s creations. I am very lucky because my life has been easier than most people’s. Of course life is not a bowl of cherries. There are many curves in the road. It is the challenges that keep us going, unraveling the knots, finding answers and solutions and moving ahead. So many people in the world are challenged for survival, living in harsh environments, starving in war torn countries. We ask- Will that situation ever stop? I am so thankful I do not live in those conditions. My challenges are working on problems with my painting, or trying to figure how to understand and respond to human behavior. We are complicated beings with so many beliefs, yet we have the same basic desires .
Things are picking up here at Ya Po Ah. Most of the activities have resumed. I do Tai Chi three times a week and go to the philosophy meetings twice a month. I also go on the day bus trips which are usually once a month. There is a give-away day once a month when everyone can bring their stuff they no longer need and leave it on tables for others to take. I seem to take more than I bring. I have found some treasures at the give -aways. I am on the entertainment committee. This month there is the Christmas light bus tour. On the second floor is the dinning area and reception area where we hold functions. This December The Ya Po Ah musicians and singers will perform, a craft fair, for the creative residents on December 15th that I will be in, and a choral group from Eugene will come for a performance. Sometimes there are free tickets to the Shedd, a beautiful building that puts on professional music programs. I just saw Irving Berlin’s Happy Holidays! there. The Saturday outdoor farmers market will be ending soon. It starts up again in March.So there you have it, life in Eugene in the community of Ya Po Ah.
I have one little story to tell. Every Saturday is the outdoor farmers market., rain or shine. It is a five minute walk from Ya Po Ah. The street is blocked off from cars and the tents line both side of the street. The displays are beautiful, all the colors of fruits and vegetables on tables and bins. Many people go to the market and they walk around with baskets full of their purchases. There is a bakery that I buy from every week, A couple of weeks ago I was late going to the market and the bakery was almost sold out, I asked if there were any donuts and the girl said no. I always look forward to getting a donut. It is a ritual and my treat for the week. I moved on and ran into a friend and we were talking when I saw the young girl from the bakery approaching. She came up to me and handed me a small bag and said I found a donut. It is a gift. She made my day unforgettable. Of course we do things for our friends, we help each other but usually not strangers.
This reminds me of something I did one cold day a few years ago. I was waiting for the bus and this homeless man was really cold. He had some gloves but couldn’t get them on so I helped him to get the gloves on and I didn’t think anything about it as I was wanting to get home and out of the cold. Another man had been watching and he said to me “Thank you for doing that”. Little acts of kindness are appreciated. People here in Eugene are friendly and often ask me if I need help. Usually it is when I am pushing my heavy bike up a hill that is too steep to peddle up. I say no I am fine. I am 85 years old and I look 85 so I appreciate their offer.
Chris is working hard on his farm, Rebel Spirit. They had the best and largest crop of cannabis this season. They are doing well because they are well established and have a good reputation. There are a lot of growers in Oregon. This means the market gets flooded and lowers the price of marijuana. Chris and Diane do everything they can do to grow the business and stay on top of it. They are amazing.
Doug is also doing well. He is selling his pottery on Etsy. I think the Covid virus has helped him because people are buying more online. Christina has a full time job on a farm that grows salad greens in greenhouses all winter. She started this job in November. I hope the best for my sons and spouses in their endeavors. Doug cut down the last of the balsam Christmas trees I planted years ago. They already have it up and decorated when I called today the 8th of December. Christmas trees here in Eugene cost a fortune. I could never celebrate the Christmas season without a living fir tree. They have already had a little snow there on Back Cove. Hope there is snow on the ground for Christmas.
The Christmas season is upon us. We live in the now. There is a future which will be the result of the actions of now. We have memories of the past and perhaps our memories change and we change the past. All possibilities can be manifested. Living in the now, with pleasant memories of past Christmases I alway look forward to the Christmas season. I like the wait, the anticipation, the time between things. It gives the season more value. Changes in life make life exciting. Moving from season to season is a known constant. On the celebration of the 25th of December we know the days will start to grow in light, This date has been celebrated for thousands of years. The meaning of Christmas is effective because it happens in the time of darkness. Light is magic, lights in the dark have so many meanings, hope, faith, growth, renewal, warmth, etc. Fairytales can come true. Miracles can happen because our hearts are open.
Those that live in darkness are living in fear. There are many things to be afraid of… Even though the world is topsy-turvy, remain in a positive attitude. Freedom is an idea that can not be diminished. Freedom is light. I believe it is the people in the first world countries, that have the opportunity to make the inventions, for a better world, to help the people living in hopeless situations. The earth is bountiful, and abundant. I have read there are ways of making energy free, and doing so without destroying the earth. Humans are learning to love themselves; all the parts the good and the bad, and not be judgmental. We are a part of the whole of humanity. Each of us is unique and of equal value to the whole, traveling on different paths that lead to the same destination.
The greatest light is love. Christmas is the time when love shines forth. It is a time when we think of others and their well being.Things are done together, cooking, eating, decorating, dancing, singing, and sitting around a fire in a warm house when it is cold outside. Without darkness we would not see the light. In the darkness, in a stable, a child was born and he was the light of the world, and his light is in each one of us. So I say Hallelujah! Our actions now will bring a bright future. There will be a time of peace, freedom and well being.
Another story that happened this week here at Ya Po Ah. We had a resident that is a quilter and she moved out about a year ago into a small house where she has room now for all her quilting materials. She arrived here at Ya Po Ah with a box of 200 stockings that she made with all the extra material she wanted to use up. She had the idea of making the stockings. We got a crew together, like Santa’s workshop and we filled the stockings with a few sweets and hung them on our folding dividers on the second floor. All residents could take one and yesterday Dec 20th most were gone . This was an extraordinary act of generosity and giving. She is one of millions of good people doing acts of kindness. It is only a few that are causing the chaos. Send out your love and change the world.
May you all be with loved ones during the holidays. May your lives be one of good health and abundance.
“ Once every year, the sun crosses the galactic center and receives the impulses that the galactic heart has been gathering from all other galaxies that send their light filled streams towards our spiral arms. What tensions will be worked out within each of us? Exciting times fellow travelers! We are in it together! ” Author unknown
“Within the circle of our lives, we dance the circle of the years, the circle of the seasons
within the circles of the years, the cycles of the moon, within the circles of the seasons, the circles of our reasons within the cycles of the moon.” Wendell Berry
“The breezes at dawn have secrets to tell you. Don’t go back to sleep! You must ask for what you really want. Don’t go back to sleep! People are going back and forth
Across the doorsill where the two worlds touch. The door is round and open. Don’t go back to sleep.” Rumi
