The Gift

A cold hand reached under the blanket and touched the skin on my back.  I squeaked in protest as my sleep-state disappeared with the artic blast.  Smirking at my discomfort, or my disheveled face, or both, my husband planted kisses on me as an “until later” tribute, and headed off to work.  He’s cute even if he is a colossal brat at times.

I mentally planned my day and got started with enthusiasm.  My resolutions lasted all of fifteen minutes—sixteen if you count feeding the cat.  Phone calls, emails, and errands quickly put me off schedule.  There finally came a point where I knew I could either be happy, or I could to stick to my list of things to do.  Happy won by a huge margin.

Once I let go of the “gottas,” I started seeing a lot of cool things.  As I drove to the grocery store I counted no less than six pheasants strutting along the highway.  If you’ve never witnessed the stunning beauty of a male pheasant feeding in the snow, you’ve missed one of nature’s masterpieces.

Later, I peered outside the window and noted our dog, Booker, destroying the grill cover my husband just purchased.  “Booker!” I said, “Are you being naughty?”  He looked everywhere but at me, even as a tuft of cover dangled from his mouth.  I tried not to laugh, but it was hopeless.

Pudgy has become fascinated with the Christmas tree and routinely removes the lower string of lights.  She was doing so as I walked by and froze.  Yeah, as if I’m not going to see a cat decorated with twinkle lights. Nice try, Pudgy, but not happening.

But the knockout surprise came as I returned from a walk with Booker.  On our outdoor steps stood six bottles of wine.  My daughter’s former high school soccer coach has started a local winery.  We’ve helped him harvest grapes at times, but didn’t hear from him this past fall.  I was worried his grape crop had failed due to the strange summer we had, but those bottles of wine said otherwise.  There was no note of explanation, but I knew they were from Santa Irv.

If you ever find yourself in the area, I would encourage a stop at their winery.  Oh my gosh, their port is phenomenal…particularly with some dark chocolate nibbles, a handsome man, and a crackling fireplace on a winter night. http://wildmountainwinery.com

Surprise wine from a friend? Are you kidding me? It was the best part of my day!