and when

the internet comes and goes tantalisingly all morning...

Today I am grateful for lunch in a sunbeam.

you know you are home when

You know you are really home when you have to go to the post office...

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nothing has changed in my absence.

Gotta love it, I certainly do!

Today I am grateful for interesting news.
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jiggety jog

It's only when you go to type a word that you haven't used or seen for many years that you realise that your memory is ummm... well, you get the picture.

Anyway, it's home again, home again, jiggety jog. (Have you ever wondered, who was that prolific writer of rhyme and rhythm, Mother Goose?)

It's great to come back to find your home has been well cared for, drastically needed maintenance has been done, and the dogs are happy and haven't even missed you! Today, after a few hours of sleep, driving to the station to put the house sitters on the train for the next stage of their adventure feels almost normal.

I miss my family, more than words can say if I let my mind wander in their direction, but it's also good to be home again.

Today I am grateful for aeroplanes, trains, and the friend who meets me at the airport.

next generation

A runner is born.It's a dedicated supporter who waits so patiently with Nonna on the sideline, knowing that the laps do come full circle. Soon he is running with mummy. This morning he was running around the kitchen.
Ok, so that's the running taken care of.

Oh Nonna, that's not right... Tomorrow I'll claim back my bike and think about triathlons, maybe.
Today I am grateful for sunshine.

pamper plus

Today I treated myself to a massage. I was given a gift certificate for a massage as a Christmas present, the appointment being a couple of days after I arrived here. It was so wonderful that I went back again today, sheer pampering.

Yes, the sore spots needed some pressure, but the pain was well worth it. Oooh to find someone like this nearer to home!

Today I am grateful for healing touch.

deadline met, let the new year roll in...

This morning (Alabama time) I emailed to Berlin an article I had been asked to write for a peace publication. The editor had asked for it "by the end of the year". I made it on time, but not without difficulty. I wasn't happy with what I had written, but then I am my own biggest critic.

Now, several hours later, I read it again. I like what I wrote. It's amazing what a little space can do to one's perception. No, I am not bragging, I am just breathing out a great big "Whew!"

A blog I follow, originally NZ based but now coming out of Melbourne, indicates that the new year has well and truly begun. At my house in Italy capodanno is still nearly three hours away. But here I must wait a little longer. In just under ten hours it will be time to celebrate to welcome in the new year.

I will be glad to say goodbye to 2011. It didn't turn out to be the year I had imagined it might be. I look forward to an exciting and rather different 2012. The things already on my calendar are exciting, things I haven't done before.

2012, you are already started or about to start in my two homes. Here in Alabama we await you patiently.

Today I am grateful for learning.

new year's eve

It's mid afternoon in New Zealand, new year's eve. Should I be making resolutions? Can I even remember the ones I made last year? Or am I right in thinking that I didn't make any last year?

mmmm... looks back to check... 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011.

Is it just another day, as birthdays are, or is it really a new start? I suspect that the new start is every day, and big events like a new year or a birthday are simply an excuse to put off doing what we know needs to be done.

But, for fun, let's pretend that we are going to keep our new year's resolutions. What might they be?

Lose weight?
Exercise more?
Keep up to date with paperwork?

BORING!

My New Year's resolutions could well be:

To live every day as though there may not be another one.
To enjoy friends and family, above all else.

To not hurry.
To not stress.

To enjoy the freedom that I have.
To spend more time outdoors.

To work less and play more.
To buy myself a windsong, in minor key.

To continue to forge this path I am on.
To be me.

Today I am grateful for neighbours.