While driving I usually listen to tunes on my iPod, which is always set on shuffle.  Songs that help me face the day and lift my spirits and lower my blood pressure...  Yesterday Mary Chapin Carpenter's Why Shouldn't We? came up in the mix and the words made me think of all the wonderful, joyful and unity-minded folks here at Gaia.

We believe in things that we cannot see
Why shouldn't we, why shouldn't we?
Hands that heal can set a chained man free
Why shouldn't we, why shouldn't we?

We believe in peace within every heart
Why shouldn't we, why shouldn't we?
Burning brightly, brightly in the dark
Why shouldn't we, why shouldn't we?

So come on darling feel your spirits rise
Come on children open up your eyes
God is all around
Buddha's at the gate
Allah hears your prayers
It's not too late

And we believe in things that will give us hope
Why shouldn't we, why shouldn't we?
Let your voice be heard, celebrate your vote
Why shouldn't we, why shouldn't we?

We believe in things that make us all the same
Why shouldn't we, why shouldn't we?
Love belongs to all in deed and name
Why shouldn't we, why shouldn't we?

And we believe in things that can't be done
Why shouldn't we, why shouldn't we?
Lift up your heart, put down your gun
Why shouldn't we, why shouldn't we?

We believe in things
We're told that we cannot change
Why shouldn't we?
We had heroes once, and we will again
Why shouldn't we?

So come on darling
Come on children
God is all around
Buddha's at the gate
Allah hears our prayers
It's not too late

Assuming I would be taking all my personal and family treasures with me, what I would miss most is the light, the way it changes and creates a variety of moods reflecting off the clouds and water outside.  Especially at dawn and dusk and just before it snows.  (I've dubbed this "snowlight" - We finally got an inch of snow last night!)  We live in a small condo complex at the edge of a small city, but we look out the back windows to the east where the sun rises over the woods and a salt marsh pond.  We don't have a bird feeder but are still treated to daily visits from all sorts of birds taking a peek at us from their perches on the back balcony railing.  Their songs fill the air.  We can walk in the woods or down the road about a mile to the sea, where we can enjoy breathtaking views of Long Island Sound.  There are a couple of state parks minutes away where we can take nature hikes.  And I have a very small garden out front - just the right size.  When I weed there are six mourning doves who watch me intently with curious looks and come very close to me.  When a neighbor opens a door or a window they fly up to the telephone wire, making that whistling sound with their wings, and continue watching me from there.  Occasionally I find a woolly bear in the leaves.  All these things I would miss the most.

The full moon of Dec. 12th is the biggest and brightest full moon of the year.  Hope Friday's predicted storm here will be over by nightfall!

http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2008/09dec_fullmoon.htm?list85692

There is an eternal landscape, a geography of the soul; we search for its outlines all our lives.
~ Josephine Hart

My husband sent me this link.  :)

http://www.dogwork.com/dogsnow/

At sunset it was too cloudy to see the biggest full moon of the year.  Disappointed, we went out for sushi, but when we left the restaurant an hour or so later she was visible!  The clouds were racing past her, covering her from time to time - it was all very dramatic and stormy.  We tried several places to get a good shot, but it's difficult in the dark with sporadic street lighting.  Finally settled on this picture taken looking over the salt pond near our home.  The camera didn't do it justice, but we'll have our memories of its exceptional brightness, especially in contrast to the fast moving clouds.

On Sunday my sister and I were out in the woods, off trail, for 4 1/2 hours.  She was tagging a species of invasive barberries for her research at the arboretum.  I was deep in thought about a number of things.

We played in the woods together (and apart!) during most of our childhood and it was almost like a flashback because we were climbing under, over and through brambles, branches and logs, using muscles that haven't been used in many years!  I thought of a quote by Edward Hoffman that rang so true for me when I first read it: Most transcendent childhood experiences happen in nature.  I remembered my encounter with a stag when I was six years old.

Yet being older now I found myself noticing different sorts things.  My sister is more of naturalist in that she knows all the facts and figures about things I tend to experience on a spiritual, mystical level.  :)  But she knew how awed I was by my recent encounter with a beautiful doe and so pointed out to me deer "nests."  They are little patches of earth they have cleared so they can curl up and lie down touching the earth directly.  I thought of Taikunping's poetry: Blessed be those who tread lightly on Mother Earth's soft skin.  And as I got a lump in my throat I thought of how Stef would understand why I wanted to cry.

And of course I thought about Paul Stamets and his conscious fungal networks, mycelium, the neurological networks of nature, and took note of all the mushrooms going about their business, aware of our footsteps.  It was a day I won't soon forget!

As for today, I woke up to snow!  Joy!!

My father-in-law died peacefully at home in Florida last night of cancer, with his wife Liz by his side.  He was 76.  Tim has lost both his parents to cancer, his father at age 48, his mother at age 60, and now his beloved stepfather.  Erik was a kind and compassionate man and well loved by all six of his sons, who were all able to take turns visiting him in the past three months, making trips from their homes in England, Luxembourg, Connecticut and Virginia.  He was passionate about his liberal politics and very happy he lived to see Barack Obama elected president.
Over the years I've believed many different things about death, but the words I find most comforting at this point in my life were written by Nathaniel Hawthorne: We sometimes congratulate ourselves at the moment of waking from a troubled dream; it may be so the moment after death.
The picture is of Erik and Tim in November.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ihbL8ewkP-o

Forget making a snowman!!!  By the time I got through digging out one of the cars I was exhausted.  Heavy, wet stuff...  Tim's under doctor's orders since his heart attack not to shovel snow.  Missed doing it together with my hubby - we've had some good times out there!  But he was happy to take pictures from the kitchen window and make me hot tea.  The young folks will have to finish it for us...  :)

Sadly, this past summer Tim's aunt found it necessary to sell a house that had been in the family for over a hundred years, and so we inherited a share of the contents.  One item precious to me, because of my role of family historian, is this beautiful large picture of Tim's great-grandaunt Mamie (1869-1892), who died at the age of 23 of Bright's disease.  She was a school teacher and engaged to marry Tim's great-grandfather.  After her death his great-grandfather spent so much time mourning his loss with her family that he wound up falling in love with and marrying her younger sister, Tim's great-grandmother.

Our niece wanted the picture, too, because she studied fashion history in college - she can date a picture by the style of clothing worn in the picture.  We had some fun testing her with dusty old family photos that were identified on the back and she was always right.  She also wanted the picture because Bright's disease is a kidney disease and while she was in college and at about the same age as Mamie she had a serious operation on a kidney abnormality, and still has trouble with that kidney.  She is in grad school now and doesn't have a place of her own yet so I agreed to keep it for her until she put down some roots somewhere.  I'm very fond of our niece - she's been the one in her generation most interested in the family history.

Last night we watched a delightful winter movie, a Czech fairy tale, Three Hazelnuts for Cinderella.

Yule is a time for reflection, thinking of the past year and what may lie ahead in the next one.  We had planned a party for tonight but Mother Nature had other ideas.  Travel has become treacherous because of this new storm so we decided to postpone our celebration.  But the two of us went ahead and lit all the candles we were planning to light and are enjoying each other's company, getting into the gingersnaps, listening to music, content knowing no one is risking life and limb to get here.  The wind is already howling and is supposed to be gale force by dark.  But we're snug as bugs in a rug, as the saying goes...  :)

Happy Holidays and Bright Blessings to All!

From Spaceweather.com:

NEW YEAR'S EVE: What a way to end the year.  On Dec. 31st, Venus and the slender crescent Moon will gather together high in the southwestern sky for a beautiful conjunction visible for hours after sunset.  The two brightest objects in the night sky can be seen through city lights and even fireworks--so everyone can enjoy the show.  Meanwhile, closer to the horizon, Mercury and Jupiter are converging for their own Dec. 31st conjunction.  This one is not so easy to see, but rewarding for those who make the effort to find the two planets shining through the rosy glow of sunset.

Visit http://spaceweather.com  for sky maps and photos of the converging planets.

BONUS: Is Venus really bright enough to cast shadows?  The answer is yes, and the proof may be found on today's edition of Spaceweather.com.  A French photographer has captured rare images of Venus casting a shadow and he has even made a movie of the shadow in motion.

Yesterday was an unusual day.  Very blustery wind, branches and twigs littering the roads...  On my way to my father's house to take him to the hospital for tests, a huge tree had just uprooted and was blocking the whole highway.  A spur-of-the-moment detour took me with a long line of cars and tractor trailer trucks up and down hills and valleys along endlessly winding back roads until we came out on another highway finally leading in the right direction.  The scenery was amazing and it only made me a little bit late.

The labs weren't very busy at the hospital so Dad was done with his tests earlier than we had anticipated.  He held up pretty well for a CAT-scan, Cardiac-Echo Test and pulmonary function tests - his allergist is concerned about his more pronounced wheezing of late, and poor lung function during an office visit.  The hardest part of the expedition was getting him in and out of the car and the wheelchair.

When we got back to the house Dad, Beverly and I settled down to watch a DVD, Horton Hears a Who!  We loved Dr. Seuss as children, and this story was Beverly's favorite.  The movie received good critical reviews, so we decided to check it out.  As expected, it didn't follow the book exactly.  I was glad baby kangaroo was portrayed sympathetic to Horton in the movie - couldn't stand that little copy-cat in the book.  ;)  But the examination of perceptions is what stood out the most to me.  The kangaroo's pronouncements remind me of things my father used to say to us as we were growing up and wanted to believe in things we perceived but he couldn't see or hear.

"Why, that speck is as small as the head of a pin.  A person on that?...  Why, there has never been!"
"I think you're a fool!  You're the biggest blame fool in the Jungle of Nool!"
"Humpf!  For almost two days now you've run wild and insisted on chatting with persons who've never existed."
"I'm here to state that your silly nonsensical game is all through!"
"All I heard was the breeze, and the faint sound of wind through the far-distant trees.  I heard no small voices.  And you didn't either."

My father will probably never believe in magic or mystery or anyone unseen, but he's a good man, kind-hearted to a fault with a great sense of humor and irony.  He had the technicians laughing at his one-liners at the hospital.  Every time I looked at him during the movie to see if he was getting a point made in the movie, he was dozing.  (Not surprising after his exhausting morning...)  But Beverly and I thoroughly enjoyed our little visit to Dr. Seuss's world, where nonsense illustrates very deep truths.

I like nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells.  Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living, it's a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope.  Which is what I do, and that enables you to laugh at life's realities.
~ Theodore Geisel  (Dr. Seuss)