All wrapped up

Ah, the luxury of getting up in the morning with no particular place to go to, expect to pick a freshly cut lettuce from my local market garden to supplement what I grow for tomorrows salad and buy milk for lattes over the coming days. (The only time cows and I meet).

The rest of the day I've spent gently (if you count a run gentle ;-) roasting courgettes, mushrooms, eggplants and red peppers for tomorrow's salad, wrapping gifts, making cards from my photos, phoning Mum and Dad, a little light domestics a Nana-nap.

Time is ticking on. Within the hour I join with my neighbour and friends for a Christmas Eve celebration. It's only 3 doors away so even I should be on time. Later I'll slip away for carols and midnight mass.

I like this time of year. It's not an easy time for many and I've known what that's like. But I'm moving from the season of Advent to Christmas feeling like I've mostly escaped the frantic commercialism of it all. After a year of restructuring at work, parental ill health and a major earthquake, I feel like I have a lot to be thankful for.

We'll all follow whatever rhythm our lives and situations choose these coming days. Enjoy.

Peace.

(Incongruous though it seems Marrianne Failthful singing 'I saw three ships' with the Chieftains is absolutely lovely).