What kind of an end of the world is this anyway?

Almost there! The fever is virtually gone, no headache, the cough is calming and the nausea only manifests when I haven’t eaten in a while, or I move around too much. This should be the last day of significant symptoms. I am taking it very easy, fearing a relapse.

I know that today we were supposed to experience the end of the world “predicted” by a partially indecipherable Mayan calendar. Leave it to me to sleep right through the end of the world!

When I woke up I was very disappointed to find all the despots and bigots alive and well. What kind of an end of the world is this anyway!

The solstice does mean that the darkness will cease to deepen, and the light will gather strength. I hope that this happens metaphorically for every single human being on planet earth today. Even the despots and bigots, may that great globe of light and life bring ever increasing light and warmth into their souls.

The weather out there is frightful (good phrase eh!). Attila says the road is so slippery that in places the tires just spin around, only inertia keeps the vehicle moving along. There was an accident near here today. An expensive city SUV sped past several local vehicles travelling the speed limit, putting everyone as risk on these roads, only to find themselves in the ditch a little further down the road. Seems the local folks know what they are about. The speeder didn’t hurt anyone but themselves, but one does resent having to deal with people who do not understand driving on rural roads.

Conditions should be better by tomorrow, todays slush and ice will be ploughed away by then.

I wrote a little Christmas Story, which I will share here. It is a true story. Not very dramatic, but very close to my heart.

My Christmas Story

I played hide and seek with my Granddaughters, six and three, and they could not find me. So as they searched for me in another room I slipped into the hallway and stood huddled by the wall. When they came into the hallway they wanted to know where I had hidden. I told them I’d been right there all the time, but had made myself invisible so they would not see me.

“Grandma, that is so cool!”, they cried as they jumped up and down.
They believed me without question.

Grandchildren are pure joy.

[I did tell them that Grandma fibbed, that no one can make themselves invisible in real life, that only happens on television and computers. I told them this because someday they will know that I did make myself invisible, and they would then know that I had not been truthful with them. I want my Grandbabies to know that they can always trust what their Grandma tells them.]

While I was sick with the flu I watched the series Hawthorne. Hated it, but was mesmerized, couldn’t help but think it would get better. It did not. I could not relate to the scenes or the plots of the episodes. I almost cheered when I finished watching the last episode. No excuse for it though, I chose to watch the thing. It wasn’t time wasted though, because unless I have another high fever I will never be tempted to watch it again, knowledge is power.

There are Christmas songs that I cherish from childhood, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer is one of them. Although I despise the message that one is only loved if one is capable of performing feats that “go down in history”, as a child that part of the poem/song did not register with me. What fascinated me was that the bullying could be stopped and that Santa, the authority figure did not discount Rudolph based on the opinions of bullies!

Worldly Distractions

Weather

0 °C
Condition: Snow
Pressure: 98.9 kPa
Visibility: 4 km
Temperature: 0.3°C
Dewpoint: 0.0°C
Humidity: 98 %
Wind: NNW 11 km/h

Quote

“Rudolph, the red-nosed reindeer
had a very shiny nose.
And if you ever saw him,
you would even say it glows.

All of the other reindeer
used to laugh and call him names.
They never let poor Rudolph
join in any reindeer games.

Then one foggy Christmas Eve
Santa came to say:
“Rudolph with your nose so bright,
won’t you guide my sleigh tonight?”

Then all the reindeer loved him
as they shouted out with glee,
Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer,
you’ll go down in history!”

Advertising Executive Robert May had a natural flair with words and was able to compose the Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer poem which was specifically designed to appeal to children. This marketing ploy was a massive success and approximately 2.5 million Rudolph, the red-nosed reindeer poems were given away in the first year of its publication! In 1949 the singer Gene Autry recorded a musical version of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer composed by Johnny Marks.