Our Cottage Arbor

I was struck tonight, a rainy end to a long day, by how charming the entrance to Annie's Cottage is. For a nice accent a forked palm tree is lit on one side of the arbor, with the picket fence marking the border of the yard. My fuzzy hand-held shot on a dark and rainy night doesn't do it justice.

It's only lit by a ten watt fluorescent lamp in a white globe, so when I wired it I didn't bother putting it on a sensor or a timer or even a switch. It's on 24/7, and always ready to be a bright spot in the neighborhood.

The arbor is the last major thing my dad built before he passed on, and he built it because his son had always wanted one. A perfect gift to me, and I'm a bit sorry that he was gone by the time I decided to paint it, though it looked fine unpainted for the years before.

For me tonight, the arbor was an especially cheery spot, and I felt the need to share that cheer. It seemed at that moment to be a focal point of all the joy that Annie and I get out of our partnership in life. And joy shared is joy multiplied, so I stood out there in the rain without a tripod, getting a fuzzy photo as a tool to share joy.

Life is good.
Share the joy.
~:-)