Miscellany - December 3, 2020

 SK and I went through this day without a single Zoom call!  We have thoroughly enjoyed every single one we have been a part of, but attending numerous meetings a day online can seem so much more wearying.  Perhaps it is because you feel less inclined to stay fully focused the entire time.  When you are online, onscreen with maybe 30 other little icon screens appearing to the host, you feel more anonymous.  But I have found that when I am not completely attentive to what is happening, it is my loss.

I got up before SK and wandered into the living room, opened the shades to see a steady drizzle of rain outside.  I opened the window a little so that I could hear it.  After turning on the Christmas tree lights and a warm glowing lamp, I curled up on the couch, read from a book I've been wanting to get to, and from the scriptures.  I spent an hour luxuriating in my PJs, with no rush to do anything.

Later in the day, we took our walk - with an umbrella fully open.  It was chilly...just perfect.  The weather says that we will not see the sun again until next Wednesday, and even then it may be partially obscured by clouds.  There is a 60% chance of snow tomorrow!...with temperatures dipping into the low 30's.

We got a Christmas card in the mail today from the England London Mission, which was actually from the First Presidency.  I think it is a lovely thing to do....send out cards to all who are serving missions.  SK loved it.  





I love the street names around here!


I made a big pot of soup that will probably last for a few days, but it filled the flat with sweet-smelling goodness and was a comfort to eat for dinner.  If you have a warm place to live and food to eat, cold weather is just marvelous.  My heart goes out to the homeless here.  I see them every now and then sitting on the sidewalk, head bowed on their knees and I wonder what their lives are like.  There are many shelters in Oxford that they can stay at.  When we have money, we give them some.  

A nice quiet evening at home was refreshing, leisurely catching up on filing, washing and ironing.

Last night in Institute, our instructor shared this wonderful quote:

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. It turns problems into gifts, failures into successes, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. It can turn an existence into a real life, and disconnected situations into important and beneficial lessons. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow. Gratitude makes things right.  Melody Beattie


And finally, Melissa posted this on Facebook about her brother.  I loved it.





Comments

melissa said…
I love that quote about gratitude. Wow!! And I’m glad you liked my post. 😊
December 5, 2020 at 12:26 AM
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