After Christmas / Family Christmas

Due to logistical factors my family's

"Christmas"

(my parents are quick to remind me

Christmas already was)

as in when we have our meal and gifts

is tomorrow.

This means presents were wrapped today.

:)

Or, well, are still being wrapped presently...

It's been a good day here

with laughter...

*

I think I am realizing on a different level

how much teasing and laughter

means to me.

It means happiness and being loved.

(My Great grandma's dishes that were given to my Mom

years ago)

*

We will have our Christmas /

my birthday (which is tomorrow) /

my sister's birthday (which was old calendar St. Nicholas day, the 19th)

dinner tomorrow.

We will use our best dishes (above).

*

I come from a family where the women on both sides

had good China dishes and loved them.

I am already busying planning a small

old calendar Christmas Eve dinner

and am organizing my Ottawa birthday party.

I just love creating beautiful evenings

with one's best dishes, table cloth, candles.

*

I am aware that creating these evenings are

high on my list of what is important in my life.

*

Hospitality is an art I want to continue to learn;

I learn by doing and I hope

to have many more evenings to create beauty

for those who come.

*

Meanwhile,

I am looking forward God willing to

tomorrow.

It will be a very full day:

Matins in the morning (my Grandma is taking me!)

Breakfast after with her;

then lunch at my Aunts with my Mom, Sister and Cousins;

then home to prepare for our meal and

family gathering.

*

These are the days I look forward to all year.

I thank God for them.

Happy

Donald Hall, in one of his poems, writes of being surprised by happiness.

I am happy today. Yesterday I got to talk with my spiritual father - he teased me about my foot - and listened to me.

The other librarians who will train me were really understanding that I could not come yet for training because of my injured foot.

One of my good friends is coming and cooking me dinner! My foot still hurts, but I think it is slowly getting better. I still need to ice it mid-day. I am hoping to wean it from the need for ice by the end of the week.

I have officially special ordered some black Birkenstock shoes - called London - I have an old dark leather brown pair that I have had nearly half of my lifetime! See http://www.birkenstock.ca/catalog/popup_image.php?pID=388&osCsid=d9ce62eec5d4fb3d5600ed4e01b67d88 ... (I tried to hyperlink, but do not have the patience).

I love these shoes and look forward to getting ones in black. I have black clogs (I think they are called Boston) and have sandals (one of which is I hope only temporarily destroyed by the car that ran over it and my foot). I only wear Birkenstocks and refuse all types of high heeled shoes. I discovered them after meeting a girl at a camp who wore them. My Mother suggested them, I tried them and never went back.

Various people from the ER were telling me to get running shoes. For a little bit I considered complying. Then I thought. WHY would I, a non-athletic city walker want to buy runners/sneakers/tennis shoes (depending on what region of N. America the shoes are called various things). Frankly, when I realized I needed to take up regular walking for my health, I considered buying these. I even went to the Running Room, which I recommend to anyone for the quality and service, and even these fine folks could not give me a shoe I would want to be seen wearing or would want to wear. I love walking around with Birkenstock shoes or sandals. I have gorgeous white funky flip-flop ones (which I was wearing on that Friday), normal granola sandals, and the above mentioned shoes.

I have hope for my future. It seems that my next work situation is going to be a good one. I am slowly reading up on the exact area of corporate librarianship, and am dreaming of a more stable life. A permanent job I can grow in, and I hope in October, my first 1 real one bedroom apartment (I live in 2 rooms plus bathroom, 1 small closet). I know what furniture I want to buy form IKEA. I am hoping to have more space and have a less cluttered but book and icon-filled apartment. Something I can really work with and have people over. A living room that is utterly child-friendly so my friends with little tots can come over. IKEA sells both a china cabinet and a buffet that have locks and match my bookshelves.

I have many dreams...