JOY TO THE WORLD

 

Dear Friends, 

Oh, what a JOY to come to the end of this year of COVID.  When the dramatic news of Covid hit the airways, I found myself with friends in La Quinta, Ca. playing golf. Driving to the airport on March 17, we felt the emptiness and fear while driving through Palm Springs. There was NO traffic; No people shopping, No one standing in line and No restaurants open. Even the life sized statue of Sonny Bono sat alone in the city park.. Suddenly, the masks appeared at the airport.

Now here we find ourselves in the same boat as the world. We are all floating down the same stream; a community of the world where we all face the same virus and dis-ease. Jack and I found JOY in the projects we completed in the first few months. Walking the dog became our lifeline.  JOY turned to sobs when our dog, Lucy died in September. Now we find our doggie fixes by walking our friends' dogs.

Golfing with friends in the fresh air has been our life boat. Rather than eat inside for our lunches on ladies day, we found a group of shade trees near the clubhouse where we could sit in our golf carts to chat or enjoy a lunch from the Trails menu. 

As if we hadn't spent enough time outside, Mother Nature saw fit to send an October ICE STORM. The next few weeks Jack and I practiced strength training in our yard, as we cut, carried, and stacked tree limbs, which six weeks later still decorate our yard.. There are blessings even in this mess. We are so thankful to our neighbors for helping, and to the broken brown limbs that have attracted more birds to our feeders. One evening a Great Horned Owl sat at the top of a broken tree and lifted our spirits with his grace. A few days later a Pinkish Dark-Eyed Junco appeared at the feeder. JOY indeed as we identified a bird we had never seen before. Like magic, the third stranger appeared to us; a Great Blue Heron adopted our neighborhood for a few days. What magnificence he shared as we watched his shadow fly over our heads, where he rested on roof tops. To think of what we would have missed if we hadn't been "home". 

 May each day bring Joy to your World. 

 

Sincerely,

Literally Letty Watt