Thanksgiving ~ 2019

This week I learned that I cannot post anything on this blog that will eventually be part of my book, A Citizen of the World. Oops!! It has to do with publishing rights, something I know nothing about. Here goes another trek up the learning curve. Where are the sherpas when I need them?

So I need to broaden the scope of this blog. I will still tell you stories about Ernesto’s life and my adventures living in Mexico, but I will also include entries about whatever is on my mind for the current week.

This being Thanksgiving weekend, I’m especially thankful for some of the whacky and wonderful things that make me laugh in this season of cold, dark days. 

I’m thankful for the Canadian geese that have overtaken Denver by the thousands. I know they poop everywhere. That’s not cool. But they also make me laugh out loud. They stroll through the parks. They stop traffic as they cross the street. They sit down on the golf courses causing the golfers to play around them. Honking at them and chasing them does no good. They are an organized, if somewhat inept, bunch ~ following their leader no matter where he takes them. (I could digress into political analogies, but I won’t this time.) 

I’m thankful for all the birds that sit on the telephone wires. They, too, make me laugh. They sit there for hours, not making a sound. They don’t sing or squawk. They just sit there, quietly observing traffic, meditating and thinking their bird-thoughts as we frantically hurry to our next destination.

I’m thankful for Elf on the Shelf. Last Sunday my grandsons came to decorate my house for Christmas for the 8th year in a row. It is my favorite holiday tradition. The boys (now young men) have Christmas decorating down to a science. The whole house is done in about 20 minutes. At this rate, they could hire themselves out. It’s a lot easier than shoveling snow. 

This year, during the decorating bonanza, I asked if Elf on the Shelf was going to appear again. Max told me “No, that guy is creepy!” I don’t agree. I find Elf to be a charming spy. I like the way he changes clothes and shows up in different places around the house. I remember one year when Max was younger, he worried because Elf on the Shelf sat on their kitchen counter all year. Max figured he could be a good boy from Thanksgiving until Christmas, but expecting him to behave for an entire year was too much. No wonder he considers Elf a little creepy. 

And speaking of shoveling show, I am thankful for the day laborers, all of them from Mexico, who shovel snow throughout my HOA community. Last week, after a huge snowstorm, the men shoveled all day ~ from early morning until well past sunset. They laughed and talked to each other in Spanish until all the steps and sidewalks were cleared. They were unstoppable. I am grateful for them. They, too, make me smile.