Of Cats, and Ornaments, and Bougainvillea Vines.

   

  12 days until Christmas and 11 days until our family celebrates (we're doing it all on the 24th this year due to health care workers' schedules.)

   Yesterday my daughter and granddaughter stopped by for a visit and while my daughter was communing with our cat who is ill, my granddaughter and I discussed each and every ornament on the Christmas Tree. Over the years I had become pretty ho-hum about them; I mean, I knew and appreciated the histories and significances of them but the wonder and joy had certainly diminished over the past thirty some odd years! (It seems very strange to write that- I can't possibly be that old!). Leave it to a five-year-old to remind me that the rag-tag bunch of baubles and bits are magical - I am grateful to her. :-)

   After they left I tackled a very large canvas that Jack had sketched a New Orleans building on for me. He's wonderful at drawing and perspective and I am - challenged -  LOL! My wonky way of looking at things comes in handy for landscapes but not so much for windows and balconies and I'm blessed with someone who will take my pictures and transfer them to canvas for me to paint. 

 I completely ignored the housework, the laundry, dinner, and the floors in favor of painting as this will be the last time I get to do this before Christmas. And it was a lovely afternoon and evening. I spent about 8 hours with the canvas and paints and visited with my cat, Tilly. She and I talked about when she first came to me- a pregnant and scared foster who claimed me as her own and stayed even as her kittens found other homes. As I painted the building's trim and blocked in windows Tilly watched it all from her perch on the tall wooden stool. She chirped back at me as I added depth and highlights, doors and flagstones. By the time I had gotten to bougainvillea vines and hanging ferns she was fast asleep. I will cherish that day and the next few that I have with her. She will be with me in spirit this Christmas and all year round in my studio. 

 Dickens knew a deeper truth when he penned A Christmas Carol. Aside from the social commentary, there is a spiritual depth to this time of year; ghosts do wander and spirits do visit. The ghosts of friends Past, the spirits of animals companions Present, and the wonder of the holidays To Come ushered in by the youngest of us.