Well, here we are on Christmas Eve. I am wearing shorts and walking about barefoot on beautiful old tiles in an incredible home in Merida with friends from the states. we have just eaten a delicous breakfast and some are sitting with their feet in the pool out back. The ceiling fans are spinning and birds are chirping. Even though we are in a very busy city, on a very busy street, the way the homes are set up you don't hear it. The doors are right on the sidewalk and give you no idea of what lurks beyond. Some open to small, simple residences, others open into opulent homes like the one I'm in. There is an open courtyard that leads to several bedrooms each with their own bathroom. Further still you enter the kitchen, dining room and pool area beyond. So by the time you're that far back, the sounds of the street fade away.
I have spent some odd holidays in my time. There was the Thanksgiving we all went out and shoplifted the ingredients for our meal ( that was in my "other" life...)or the Christmas we spent in an abandoned house festooned with a tree that John had earned by sweeping a parking lot ( also in our previous life...)and gifts provided by the VA. There were a few similar holidays...then there were the christmases where all of the gifts came from Goodwill.Little by little as the years went by, the holidays became a bit more elaborate. We had the ability to buy larger gifts. Then, as the kids got older, we started making gifts for people because they really didn't "need "anything. Then we had a grandson and that added a whole new twist.
Yesterday we gave all the plants a good drink, grabbed 5 or 6 coconuts to take in to people, and as we were driving in we managed to avoid a snake about four feet long ( live). Wearing a skirt and sandals we checked into the hotel where everyone knows us and went for a stroll around the city. This morning as we packed up to leave, John passed out the coconuts to hugs and"gracias"s and wishes for 'feliz navidades" and we drove to this beautiful home where we ate a wonderful meal with friends. Now, my kids are missing from this picture and that saddens me but at the same time I know they are healthy and happy. As any parent knows, you can't really ask for more. They have their own homes and their own lives. we all love and miss each other but we are all OK. I cant help but feel that this is a warm up for the eventual, after all, none of us will be here forever.
So, it's christmas eve and we are all in various stages of some adventure if you are above ground and breathing. My wish for you all is that you make the most of it. Ever see one of those "choose your own adventure' books? It's like that. If you don't like the way this one is going, take a different path. I used to force myseldf to finish a book even if i didn't like it. As I've gotten older, I've realized I don't need to waste time on things I'm not enjoying. I have choices. Who knows whats waiting for any of us around the corner-could be better and it could always be worse. Sometimes the most memorable experiences are the ones that didn't exactly go well. Today , I can laugh about the holidays in hell I had before-because i'm not there anymore! Right now, all we have is today. Here's wishing you all adventure. Good or bad, at least it's interesting. I don't know about you, but I don't want to draw my last breath with regret. Who knows what lurks behind the next door......
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