Reflections...

Tonight as I stood on the pier looking out over the water, I was totally enthralled with the reflection in the water. There was just the slightest of breezes making tiny ripples on the water. Just as darkness settled in, the solar lights on the net/ Christmas Tree lit. The reflection of these multi-colored lights was even more vivid than the those on the tree itself! The ripples multiplied the effect of the lights at least tenfold. Those tiny ripples spread out the reflections of the tiny dot lights to being large streaks of light at least a foot long. I stood staring at the shimmery tree in the water and thought of how sometimes things seem much larger than they truly are. Those tiny ripples plus the tiny dots of light made a huge impression!

Sometimes our holiday traditions are a lot like those glittery streaks in the water. What starts as a small incident can sometimes snowball into a huge situation if it is allowed. In most cases, it is best to stop things from ever getting to this point but then again, if it is a good thing...let 'er snowball! Case in point...this cookie making thing that will happen tomorrow. Darling Daughter, Elizabeth, is on her way down for a Christmas visit. She and her husband, Robbie, are driving her little red sleigh..er..car loaded with everything and then some to spend a few days on the Bayou. I know that tomorrow will be spent in the kitchen. Flour will fly, mixers will spin, pans will rattle and the most enticing aromas will fill the house. A myriad of cookies, cakes and candies will soon fill the dining room table. These goodies will be packed in tins, boxes, bags and baskets to be delivered to family and friends..but not before each batch is sampled! This tradition started years ago when she was just a little tyke. The kids and I would spend days and days in the kitchen baking anything that sounded yummy. At first, these goodies were shared with just grandparents, then aunts and uncles were added to the list and now, that list has grown to include neighbors and friends. The idea behind the bakefest sharing snowballed into a full-blown tradition and not a bad one at that! This gift-giving of baked goodies has a way of making holidays even more special..not only for those on the receiving end of the delicious treats but for Elizabeth and me! We spend the day laughing, talking and sharing. It is a special time that is like those reflections in the water. The more cookies we bake, the better time we have...the more ripples in the water, the bigger the reflections. Ahh...life is good!

Of nets and lights!

Christmas, Christmas Time is near...

The tree is up on the pier!

Time for joy, time for fun..

Oh, I'm glad that job is done..

I know that is not exactly the words to the song...not even close but whew!...I am glad that tree is up! Not that this was exactly a hard chore..just cold...really, REALLY cold! Mark and I went down late this evening armed with our net, rope, hammer, nails and strings of solar lights. All of this to erect one small Christmas Tree! It actually only took a few minutes to make the tree and add the string of lights. We supposed since it was a very long string, one would suffice. At least, we would give it a trial run for one night and see how bright the lights were. After the cold front moved through here, the past few days have been quite chilly. I can handle chilly but once the wind turned back out of the south, it was downright frigid! This wind picked up the moisture as it moved over the water and combined that with the cold air to make it most uncomfortable. But...the tree is up! After dark, we did decide that it needs a few more lights and will rectify that in the morning.

Speaking of cold...frigid...icy..I went to the pier early this morning. I was there before daybreak (about 5AM) and the sky was a fiery red! As the darkness of the night lifted, I could see that there were literally hundreds of ducks on the Bayou. I marveled at the fact that they did not seem to mind the cold, cold water. A lone nutria rat was also on the prowl and she, too, appeared oblivious to the iciness of the water. I, on the other hand, was not oblivious to the cold. I sat shivering even though I had the presence of mind to bring a heavy throw to wrap around me. (This proved to be an extremely smart move as the pier was sopping wet! My bench was covered with a thick coating of frost and that would have made for not-so-fun sitting!) I did not wait for the sun to fully rise before heading back to the Little Bayou House and a hot mug of coffee and a leftover muffin from the night before!

Tonight, the sunset was even more enthralling than the sunrise. The layers of color were so vivid that it was breathtaking! I started thinking about my feeble attempt at decorating the pier. My strings of solar lights could never compete with the brilliance of the Master's own solar lights! Still, I will continue to decorate the pier, adding lights as necessary to make my little tree a thing of beauty. After all, this is for a very special Birthday and I am sure He will understand that my tree is from the heart and it needs not to compete with the beauty or brilliance of any other.

...I have no gift to bring, pa rum pum pum pum

That's fit to give a King, pa rum pum pum pum....

But I try......I try.