Have a Merry Christmas, In Spite of It All!!!

Did your year suck? Ours did in a whole BUNCH of spots! But you know what? We're celebrating CHRISTMAS in this house!

In the plus column for this day: the Christmas tree is up! I had to move some things around to make room for it. Last year, I put the tree directly in front of the deck doors. It looked nice there but it was a bit worrisome to have the second exit to our house blocked in case of emergency. Hmm.

So this year, I moved that chair with the red blanket on it out of the corner by the kitchen table and put the tree there instead. Now I can sit on that chair anytime I want and gaze at our festive Christmas tree, topped with our very own Christmas angel.

Sock Monkey sits nearby with the red Christmas pillow with the blonde angel on it that looks like Stevie Nicks, in a comfy chair by the deck doors. Let me link back to the story of how we got Sock Monkey, and the three polar bears that are playing beneath the tree (and eventually the Moose too, though he was napping in another room and unavailable for photos when this one was taken).

I do so love Christmas. My mother loved Christmas too. (She and my dad passed in late September, about 7 hours apart, after being happily married for 73 years!) She got a lot of joy out of Christmas, and I have so many lovely family photos and memories around this holiday. Despite a year of staggering losses, in her honor, I will do my best to celebrate the everlasting effing heck out of this one!

Also, note that this blip is a special one. It represents my 12-year blip birthday, or blippiversary, as we say, so let me take a minute to say Hello and Welcome and Thank You, one and all! 

No matter what the prior years have brought, my days have been brightened by the daily quest to find at least one good or beautiful or strange or amazing thing to post here. It has made me a much better photographer. It has also made me a better person: to try to find in each day one thing to celebrate or tell a story about.

Thanks for your comments, your encouragement, your love, and your inspiration! Come for the photos, stay for the stories and the songs! :-)

We need a soundtrack song to go along with this, and I've selected this one: Yusuf Islam, aka Cat Stevens, with If You Want to Sing Out, Sing Out. And as I end this anniversary blip, here is my challenge for you. Take part with me in a brave and rebellious act: Try to seize some joy in this day, in spite of it all!!!

Well, if you want to sing out, sing out
And if you want to be free, be free
'Cause there's a million things to be
You know that there are