A Christmas Wish

Natures beauty year round.

Nineteen years ago tears rolled down my cheeks as I looked out our window into the woods and thickets on our land East of Norman, and began saying my goodbyes to our tiny world of nature's beauty, to our friends, and family.  

Katy and Matt 1990

Little did I know how blessed we'd be with eighteen years in Hutchinson, Ks.  Hutch is a place where we knew our neighbors; we borrowed eggs, sat out back and shared a drink and our daily stories; watched children and grandchildren grow up; loved on our

Pepper loved to have her ears rubbed.

pets up and down the street.  The birthdays said we turned another year older, but the laughter we shared kept each of us young. (We never thought to take pictures.  Guess we just thought we'd see each other everyday.)

Pat Maca French, Jack, Letty, Larry French

Jeannette and Kathy at LaVonne's in Buhler.

Kansas filled our hearts with memories of the prairie, the winds, the snows, but mostly the friends we met. We shared gourmet meals, rounds of golf, travels, bottles of wine, cheerful lunches, absorbing book discussions, and built deep and lasting friendships.   Our careers changed courses just like our lives, but with each change came growth, learning, and new friends.  We are thankful for those changes and those years filled with happiness and sorrow.

Our comfy chairs made the move and have already felt snow this year.

   

Once again the tears flowed as we said our goodbyes to the snowy windswept Kansas prairie and friends. We anxiously arrived in Oklahoma to family, friends, and a new future as a retired couple
searching for another purpose in life.

With winter's cold breath outside, we sit by the window and count our blessings.  A new tree out back will offer shade in years to come and a home for animals.  It's not the rugged prairie nor the cross timbers by the lake, but it is home.  So from our home to yours We Wish you All the Peace and Beauty of the Season, and time to count your blessings.  

  *Happy Birthday to my Christmas family and friends: Jonya, Mary W, Ann W, Diane D, Patty M, Jim R, Doug B, Carol U, Kathy T, Lora W

Buhler on the Flip Side

Simply stated, "It's the time of year when shopping comes to mind."  The verbs want and need frequently are overused, then again need rhymes with greed and that worries me.  I enjoy the quiet but colorful atmosphere of  Buhler, KS.   Tasty bierocks from LaVonn's Bakery, on the East side of town,  started my afternoon.  Next I walked to Main street and started up the West side, all the time being lured by the aromas of Christmas coming from a row of stores.  Rich cinnamon is my favorite with apple spice as a close second.    Then again I'm always intrigued by snappy words that lure the mind, such as The Rustic Edge and Vintage Seasons.  Now, with names like that one must go inside to explore the hidden meanings.

Inside the Rustic Edge my eyes wondered from purses to jewelry, clothes to spices, and then my eyes focused on a favorite color, turquoise   The turquoise was not jewelry; it was a table and chairs and matching hutch, and "rustic" indeed.  It would look so colorful in our home.  I sat down at the table to ponder how and where, but then realized that day dreaming was part of shopping.

Christmas angels

One door leads to another, from The Rustic Edge I opened an old screen door and stepped into another store.  What I found was a hidden treasure: a canoe hanging from the ceiling, a row of church pews, quilts and glass ware.  After wandering around I just had to sit in the church pews.  Right there on the mantle, as my eyes wondered in childlike glee in Vintage Seasons, I saw three angels.  Not just any three angels, but three little girls that matched two larger ones that were given to my sister and me one Christmas a long time ago.  The three angels were not perfect with their wings glued back together, but they matched and took me back to a childhood time of fresh evergreen trees propped up in a coffee can filled with sand, to a time when Santa Claus delivered a few toys and a new pair of pajamas.  Angels can do that...they can take you most anywhere your heart desires.  This Christmas those angels will have a new home on our mantel.

How fun is this.

                                                                                                              On the flip side, little towns can offer the weary shopper delight, a place of rest, an imaginative journey, gifts for the soul, and gifts for friends.  Most of all shopping in small towns offers conversations with perfect strangers, who are then strangers no longer.