January 8, 2013: Star Light, Star Bright...

...first star I see tonight. I wish I may. I wish I might. Have the wish I wish tonight.

hot tub time machine...
I couldn't resist the lure of the hot tub tonight. It was calling my name as the boys and I drove home from the Jays game and my car thermometer read 39 degrees. Perfect hot tub weather. After a so-so day, just what the doctor ordered.

The added surprise was leftover Irish ale from a Christmas party. Finding this treasure in the dark recesses of my garage frig was nothing short of a calling. After a quick chemical shocking of the hot tub (I do have teenage boys), the 103 degrees of aqua therapy was bliss.

Relaxing with beer in hand and gazing up at the bright star-filled night, I was quickly reminded of my nightly ritual four years ago. In those days I was coping with my new life of alone-nights. The hot tub and a glass of wine were my therapy for thinking about life and calming my nerves a bit. It was a chance to reflect on the past and use those lessons for the future. Each night I would look up at the starry sky and recite the childhood verse in my head "star light, star bright, first star I see tonight...". And in a very childish, but hopeful way, I would wish on a star.

My wishes were simple. I wished for love and happiness. I didn't have a clue at the time what the future held for me, but I had hope and faith that God would lead the way. So here I am today. Gazing at the same stars from four years ago and feeling pretty darn good. Cheers.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Own Your Shit

Image
  A few weeks ago my previously favorite blog subject (otherwise known as my middle son, Ben) called me for advice. The reason isn't significant now, but his approach to the conversation carried weight with me. "Mom, I need your advice on something. And before we even go there, what I am going to tell you is completely my fault. I get all the life lessons around it. What I want is just advice. So can we just put that all aside and stick to advice on my situation?" I respected Ben's ask and we had a productive conversation. He sought out advice from others and ultimately came to a good conclusion. Owning his shit and life lessons acknowledged early on,  I am pretty confident Ben won't be in the same situation again. I have always felt that a top responsibility in parenting is to teach our kids to think critically on their own. A specific skill that falls squarely in this category and high on my list is the ability to own your shit. To accept blame when due. To know
Read more

July 28, 2020: The New Normal

Image
"Are we back to normal again?" I heard my father-in-law, Larry (aka Old Guy), asking Garrett this as I laid in bed.  Garrett was performing his morning ritual of coffee bean grinding before brewing our morning specialty coffee. This was after he had read and stretched, all while I was still thinking about waking up. Through the crack in the door, I could see Larry sitting, feet up, in his favorite sofa spot. Jake, my step-son, was noisily filling his large water jug for a day in the sun at his summer job. This clanging of ice at 7 am along with the permeating coffee aroma and Larry's shuffling have been my morning wake-up routine of recent times. With my delivered cup of hot java, I hear the sounds of the morning; the garage door opening with Garrett taking Jake to work and the percolating of Larry's own coffee of choice, Folgers, in his Mister Coffee machine. His own pot to drink through the morning while enjoying his latest book. Yes, Larry, I think we are
Read more