Thursday, July 18, 2013

How blessed I am

Dinner tonight with two close friends at Simply Fondue--we laughed our way through dipping vegetables and bread cubes in a really good cheddar cheese fondue and then fruit, marshmallows, even Rice Krispy squares in Bananas Foster fondue. So good, and so much fun!
When I came home, I let Sophie in...and found my deck festooned with tiny white lights, and Scooby's old dog house decorated with multi-colored lights. My neighbors Jay and Susan did that and brought two benches over because Saturday night we'll celebrate my birthday and Susan's with all my kids and grandkids and a few neighbors and friends. I am so impressed that what was once a wasteland for the dogs has been transformed into a lovely, inviting space. Elizabeth gets credit for initiating this, because she decorated the entrance to her tiny house with her plants and statuary (we have a definite Buddha/Indian influence) and put a table and chairs in the back under the trees.
I'd been thinking earlier today about how lucky I am...or blessed. In a world that seems so full of angry people, I am surrounded by people who take good care of me and seem to enjoy doing it. One day, several months ago, Socorro was here cleaning the house, neighbor and friend Greg was working on the lawn, and Lewis and Jim, the contractors who keep my house together, were doing something. Jacob looked at me and said, "Juju, there are a lot of people at your house today." There were, and I'm not sure I could keep the house going without any of them.
This morning, Lewis and Jim cleaned gutters while Greg mowed. Having Lewis climb that tall ladder made me very nervous (he later said, "Me too!) and then I saw Greg standing on the porch railing (it's really a concrete ledge) trimming ivy off the wood parts near the roof and that made me nervous. But all was well.
So my yard is neat--no roses yet. All the wonderful rain we've had has made it way too muddy. My gutters are clean, though they still need repair when they dry out (it rained downtown tonight--we saw big puddles). And my backyard is festive. Tomorrow my house will be clean.
I saw out on the deck tonight, lights twinkling around me, and though how grateful I am for friends and neighbors and for the people who make it possible for me to continue to live in the house I love.

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