Monday Musings

Now that Thanksgiving is past, it’s time to move on to another time-honored tradition, decorating for the holidays. Depending on your family background, you may prepare for Christmas or Hanukkah; in our home, it’s Christmas. Time to tidy up from turkey day and head out in search of the perfect tree. We’re fortunate to live in the Blue Ridge Mountains of NC, where Christmas Tree farms abound. So we wind through the hills and dales until we arrive at our favorite spot and bundle up against the elements.  We trek up and down through rows of towering pines to select the perfect specimen, hail a tree-cutter, ride back in a wagon to pick up our prize where it has been trussed for travel, and strapping assistant loads it up. We follow a caravan of tree-topped cars and trucks back to civilization. The bindings loosed, and our 8-foot Fraser Fir leans on the deck overnight to settle its limbs. Stacks of boxes and bins are trundled from the basement. The next day, the tree is lugged into the ...

This week those of us who live in the US celebrate Thanksgiving. A time to gather with friends and/or family. Plentiful meals to prepare and enjoy. To binge on football. Or begin the hunting season. I’m thankful to travel and break bread with loved ones. How will you spend this weekend? You can follow the Author at her  Website  or on  Twitter .

Who is the richest individual in the world today? Is it the multi-billionaire Elon Musk? Does the dictionary definition tell us what real riches are? It avoids mentioning family and friends. What of a loving pet? Or do you find deep meaning in art? Perhaps music? Everything in excess is opposed to nature. ~ Hippocrates   My wife and I learned the meaning of the word when we worked as a non-profit entity in Haiti for six visits over the two years following the 2010 Earthquake. We now understand the difference between want and need. Above all, maybe richness is the knowledge to discern the definition of the word as it applies to oneself. Are you rich? What is your personal understanding of the word? You can follow the Author at her   Website   or on   Twitter   (where she is now a Blue Check Verified Tweeter.) LOL

Tomorrow, Tuesday, November 8th, is Election Day. We are privileged to live in a free republic where we have the right to elect our governing officials. Depending upon where you live, you may have multiple voting options: vote-by-mail, early in-person voting, or voting in-person on Election Day. But who to vote for? So many candidates and issues. Fortunately, as Americans, we can choose for whom/what to cast our vote. Decisions, decisions. And NO, I’m not going to suggest how you should mark your ballot; that is for you alone to decide. Be a thinking voter. Information is readily available on the internet or in local, regional, and national publications.  Political commercials are laughable and insulting to one’s intelligence. Avoid being pigeonholed down straight party lines.  Dare to read the news on opposing news sites, no matter how much it makes you cringe. You may find one rough gem of another vein. One that may make all the difference in our world. I’ll be voting in-per...