Tell them now....

Although every Christmas was special to us, there are a few that stand out in the eyes of my sisters and I.The Barbie townhouse, with an ELEVATOR y'all!, was the shining moment for me one year, and my sister, Melissa, got a speed buggy and a sit'n spin, that same year. We made ourselves sick on that thing, spinning round and round so fast that when we laughed, no sound came out due to the wind velocity we were creating. At least, that's how I remember it. Then one year,  there was the Holly Hobbie oven. I made a real cake! It was the size of a small round brownie but when you're eight  years old, it's the size of a Texas sheetcake. That year, Mom, er, I mean, Santa, put 3 different flavors of Freshen-up gum in our stockings; Spearmint, Peppermint and Cinnamon. Today, if I come across Freshen-Up gum anywhere, I immediately go back to that Christmas. Small things I know, but these are what memories are made of. Those tiny little details that you think you've forgotten, that appear the second you see, or hear something to jog the memory.

Now that I've grown up, well *mostly*, ahem, I can look back and appreciate the lengths my mom went to in order to make Christmas a special time of year. It always was, and I know it was because of her. I think it's important to tell our loved ones that we appreciate their efforts, and that we love them for everything they do. Tell them now. Don't wait to tell the story, or the feeling, years later. It's a free gift to give, and one they will treasure always.

I can remember Mom telling us stories about when she was growing up and what Christmas was like back then. My grandma had seven kids, unfortunately one passed away the day she was born. So mom grew up with three sisters and two brothers, can you imagine the mayhem on Christmas morning? I'm pretty sure all of my cousins know that when Grandpa was ready for his kids (my generation's parents) to come out of their bedrooms and begin the barrage of unwrapping everything that my grandparents probably just stayed up all night to wrap, he would put Bing Crosby's Jingle Bells on. When the kids heard that they knew it was "go" time. I think many of us today do this same ritual, because Pap did.
We called my Grandpa "Pap", I think maybe I couldn't say grandpa (?) , or maybe I just saw "Pap" when I looked at him, but once I called him that, he became Pap to everyone in our family. As you might surmise, my extended family is huge, so I claim what stories I can here and there. I have always felt lucky to be a part of such a large family. I love them so much.

I like hearing about what other families traditions are during the holidays, and also when they share memories from Christmas past. This is our makeup, or at least part of it. The good part hopefully, I know the holidays can be rough for some people, and I am always sorry to hear about that from friends, or even family. It's called The Most Wonderful Time of the Year, Andy Williams (and other artists)  sing this, with me often singing right along. Yes, I'm one of those. I love *most* holiday music, and if I know the words, or really, let's be frank, even if I don't, loud and proud I will sing along anyway. What I would say to anyone having a hard time during this time of year, is try and pick one good memory, just one, from this season and focus on that. Remember what's on the list of things you are grateful for,  and know that you're not alone. I see the spirit of peace on earth, goodwill toward men, more during this time of year, than any other month. I do wish it could be that we have this feeling all year long, but I think it's also one of the reasons why this time of year is special.

My family spent the last two weeks of 2014 in Florida. Because I wasn't home for the holidays then, there wasn't much decorating going on at my house. I believe I subconsciously decided to make up for that this year. If it's stationary and doesn't breathe on its own, it's wrapped in lights in some form or fashion. One Christmas tree was not enough, oh this won't do. I must decorate two, I thought to myself. Hours and hours later.......you can see my house from space. I know Clark Griswold would approve.

I'm not sure what is happening with this strange December weather, but yesterday was the Winter Solstice and at the time I write this, it's currently 75 degrees. I don't know whether to go to the pool or light a fire, or, well, both.

With the year winding down to a close, I want to wish you a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. That clean slate, fresh new year feeling is just around the corner! But for now, if at all possible in this hustle and bustle world, slow down, and relax a little. Enjoy time spent with your family and friends, and hopefully those holiday traditions that have been with you for a long time.

Take good care of yourself friend,

Tiffany

PS I was slightly mischevious when I was younger. A shocker I know. We lived in a 2 story house that had an attic door halfway up from the floor in the bedroom my mom would do sewing in. During the holidays, Mom would make cookies and fudge, all the good things, and often store them in containers, and place them just inside the door on a shelf in the attic, because there was plenty of room and it was very cool there. That IS why she did it, I am SURE it wasn't to hide them. I found the chocolate crinkle cookies one year (my favorite). And well, I may have snuck a few when she wasn't looking. Needless to say, she was very surprised when she went to get them to put together platters of goodies, and some were missing. You notice how I'm not saying how many were left, don't you? I'll be making these tomorrow, Christmas Eve at Tiffanys. It's just like Breakfast at Tiffany's, but even more festive. The recipe: https://www.hersheys.com/recipes/en_US/recipes/5592/cocoa-crinkle-cookies.html

You.Are.Here.

I stood out on my patio tonight, listening to very little sound, a few leaves rustling with the gentle breeze, in this very warm weather Dallas has been having of late.
I live close enough to the airport that I can always see a few planes going by at any given time of day, and then of course at night I can really see them. It appears that they are flying fairly slow, drawing a line of lights as they ease across my view. But I live just far enough from the airport, that unless they are flying right above me, I can hear no sound.
I was thinking that it looked like the beginning of a movie, no sound, but you see the plane coming in for landing, all lit up so they can be seen as they fly in. I often wonder, who is on the plane, and are they coming home? Or are they visiting family, or coming to the Lone Star State for work? All of those stories, on one plane. It would probably take a while to interview the passengers and write down their words on paper.

So.many.stories.

Patio time, with night sky-watching, always brings deeper thoughts than what I normally have during the day. The world is so vast, so populated, but yet we all share the same moon, and the same sun, and the same constellations. There are probably many people doing the same thing  I am doing, looking up at that night sky, searching for the Big Dipper. But not everywhere. In Paris, it's almost four o'clock in the morning, for example. (It's also 42 degrees there right now, but I won't whine about them being able to have winter weather, while I have the air conditioning turned on). No, really.

Many of us wonder how we matter in this big world that we live in.



I've come to find that we do matter, and not just in our little corners of the world. We might write a few words, or say a few things, to people across the globe, that totally changes their day. My friends and family in Missouri always think of me when the leaves start to burst with those gorgeous Fall colors, because they know it's my favorite season. I'm not always there, but they think of me anyway.

And of course, they think of me when their forecast has snow in it, especially given that I'm not sure that N. Texas will have the kind of winter that I like so much, this year.

During the holiday season, I notice a gentler side to people as a whole. I know it can be a hard time for some. They may not have family around, or have had hard times recently. My wish is, and always has been, that there will be a gift of some kind bestowed on them when they least expect it. It may not be the kind that's wrapped in colorful shiny paper, topped with a big bow. It could be something simple, like a friend calling them to chat, or to have them over for dinner. These small gestures are how we matter.

Giving to our favorite charities, whether it be time or money, is how we matter. Helping a friend, or a co-worker through a rough time, is how we matter. Giving the usually chatty, elderly neighbor, a few extra minutes of our time, even when we're in a hurry, is how we matter.

I encourage all of us to find ways to help those in need this holiday season. Trust me, you will get more out of it than the receiver.

See you soon friend,
Tiffany

PS Breakfast has returned to the patio in the mornings. I might as well enjoy the warm spring-like weather while it's here, yes?

The Sun Will Come Out.....Tomorrow

As I sat working in my "home office" I noticed that it was getting darker and darker outside. I knew the weather forecasters were predicting inclement weather, but I hadn't turned the T.V. on to check. I figured if I was inside and I had secured my patio, I was good to go.
I lit a few candles because I always lose power during storms. Most of the time it's brief, but I love lit candles anyway and what better time to light them than during rolling thunder and lightning.
One of my coworkers, who knows me well, sent me an instant message through our chat option at work. "I know you don't have your T.V. on but I want you to turn it on right NOW" he said adamantly.

Uh-oh.

I've never really been afraid of storms, I'm kind of fascinated with weather actually. But I don't want anyone to get hurt or lose their homes, or much worse, their lives.

Needless to say, I left the T.V on so I could at least listen while I was working. Within twenty minutes I was in the center of my apartment in the bathroom that has no windows, with the door shut tight. The forecasters couldn't keep up with the reports coming in, and I now know that 13 tornados hit the Dallas area. Just as they were describing semi-trucks being lifted into the air and pummeling into buildings the electricity went out.
Fun times.

All in all I think the worst part of the storm that hit where I live lasted about 20 minutes. When the loudest sound I've ever heard began to subside, I slowly opened the door to peek out and see if the back door had flung open. It sounded like it had, which puzzled me because I thought I locked it. It wasn't open, the wind was just hitting it hard enough to jostle the wind chime that hangs on the inside door knob. I started looking around to see what window broke during the hail storm, I knew there had to be at least one, it sounded like knives hitting glass. I got lucky, there was only one, in the bedroom.

I stepped outside to survey that beautiful swimming pool that is just beyond my patio.

Well. I don't mind swimming in the lake, but this is crazy.

I wasn't worried about my car because I was parked undearneath the carport. Little did I know, I had pulled forward a little too far. But the damage to my car was minimal compared to the vehicles that were left out in the open. Every single car had damage, most had windows and windshields blown out. Glass was everywhere, especially underneath the apartment windows that blew out. Still, we didn't lose our homes the way some did in Lancaster, and Forney, TX.

The forecasters kept saying, "don't believe the lull, round two is coming, please stay in your safe zones until further notice". I didn't stay outside long. It was like Christmas only the air was much warmer. The crunching sound the hail made as people were timidly walking over it to see what it had caused was reverberating throughout the parking lot.

And that hail was no joke.


Right before I went back inside I came across these two, seemingly assessing the damage, quite audibly mind you.
   
                                                                     

So, with candles lit, but the electricity back on, I settled in to watch the reports to see if anything else was headed my way. The cell towers were up and down so I was receiving sporadic messages asking if I was okay, and letting me know that my local friends were all safe and sound.
The storms begin to move east, away from the metroplex so I relaxed a little, knowing that for this round anyway, we were probably in the clear.

And then, as a small reminder that the sun really does come out tomorrow, I awoke to the most gorgeous day ever. The sun was shining brightly, and the humidity was low enough that I could open the windows and let the breeze come in.
The clean up had begun, maintenance was all over the place assessing damage and repairing windows and screens, and some broken doors, removing glass from the parking areas, and knocking on doors to ask if there was anything urgent that anyone needed today.

I saw so many people coming together to help after the horrible storm that hit Joplin, MO last year, and again this year when Branson, MO was hit. People were driving to Alabama to help out last year, giving a helping hand to anyone that needed it.  Storms may wreak havoc, but we pull together after them.

And the sun does shine again.

See you soon,
Tiffany