Thursday, December 24, 2009

Twas the night before Christmas

L Bug absolutely adores this book.  We read it over and over, and I think it's just as magical for me now as it was when I was her age.  I love it!

'Twas The Night Before Christmas

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;

The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads;

And mamma in her 'kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled down for a long winter's nap,

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.

Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow
Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below,

When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer,

With a little old driver, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.

More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,
And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;

"Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen!
On, Comet! on Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen!

To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!
Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!"

As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky,

So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,
With the sleigh full of toys, and St. Nicholas too.

And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof
The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.

As I drew in my head, and was turning around,
Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound.

He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,
And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot;

A bundle of toys he had flung on his back,
And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack.

His eyes -- how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!

His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow;

The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,
And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath;

He had a broad face and a little round belly,
That shook, when he laughed like a bowlful of jelly.

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,
And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;

A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread;

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,
And filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk,

And laying his finger aside of his nose,
And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose;

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.

But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight,
"Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good-night!"

I also feel it's vital to include one more poem, the version for our soldiers - the men away from their families tonight desperately fighting for our freedom.

Twas the night before Christmas,
He lived all alone,
In a one bedroom home made of plaster and stone.

I had come down the chimney with presents to give
and to see just whom in this house did live.
I looked all about, a strange sight did I see.
No tinsel, no presents, not even a tree.

No stocking by mantle, just boots filled with sand.
On the wall hung pictures of a far distant land,
With medals and badges, awards of all kinds,
A sober thought came to my mind.

For this house was different; it was dark and dreary.
I had found the home of a soldier, once I could see,
The soldier lay sleeping, silent, alone,
Curled up on the floor in this one bedroom home.

The face was so gentle, the room in disorder,
Not how I pictured a United States soldier.
Was this the hero of whom I'd just read?
Curled up on a poncho, the floor for a bed?

I realized the families that I saw this night,
Owed their lives to these soldiers who were willing to fight.
Soon round the world the children would play,
And grownups would celebrate a bright Christmas day.

They enjoyed freedom each month of they year
Because of the soldiers, like the one lying here.
I couldn't wonder how many lay alone,
On a cold Christmas Eve in aland far from home.

The very thought brought a tear to my eye,
I dropped to my knees and started to cry.

The soldier awakened and I heard a rough voice,
"Santa, don't cry, this is the life of my choice,
I fight for freedom, I don't ask for more,
My life is my God, my country, my corps."

The soldier rolled over and drifted to sleep,
I couldn't control it and continued to weep.
I kept watch for hours, so silent and still,
And we both shivered from the cold winter's chill.

I didn't want to leave on that cold, dark night,
The guardian of honor so willing to fight.
Then the soldier rolled over, whispered soft and pure,
"Carry on Santa, It's Christmas Day and all is secure."

One look at my watch, and I knew he was right.

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good-night!

Authors unknown.  Soldier photo © 2006 Phillip Nesmith

Saturday, July 04, 2009

Happy 4th of July!

Happy 4th of July!

I pledge allegiance to the flag
of the United States of America
and to the Republic for which it stands
One nation under God
indivisible
with liberty and justice for all. 

*~*~*~*~*

Declaration of Independence
July 4, 1776

We hold these truths to be self-evident,
that all men are created equal,
that they are endowed by their Creator
with certain unalienable rights,
that among these are
LIFE
LIBERTY
and the
PURSUIT of HAPPINESS

*~*~*~*~*

Today, be thankful for all of the people who fought for our freedom during the past 200+ years.  Remember many of the world's populations who live in captivity and are not free to do what they please.  We are very blessed to live in a country where we can worship the God we choose, take our children for a walk without being in danger, and work a profession of our choice to make a living, spendable on whatever we choose.  Be grateful for the men and women all over the world who defend our freedom every single day.  

Wednesday, November 05, 2008

red white + blue… perspective + freedom

So *technically* Barack Obama is not the President. Absentee ballots have another week or something to arrive. But he's popular and he makes huge promises, so I'm just taking it and moving on. (I'm sick of election drama, remember??)

BUT.... I am excited about his win, even though Sarah Palin is SO going to rock this in 2012. (McCain? Yeah.... no comment...) I'm not an Obama fan, and even though he clearly doesn't respect certain religions and beliefs, he is our President. We must pray for his guidance and strength whether we like him or not. I pray for his safety in a nation that has made huge strides in acceptance but still lacks where it counts the most. I hope his experience is enough to help him make the difficult choices that we cannot even yet dream of. Deep inside? I hope his elaborate promises (that I know in most cases are not realistic) bring a little bit of relief to people like me - people with disabilities, people in minorities, those who need a little help NOT out of laziness and lack of will, but simply out of chance, fate, circumstances out of their control. Those who simply want to live the American dream and do so with more courage than any other normal citizen. You know, not everyone is willing to continually wrestle with and defeat an obstacle, fighting a million times harder for the same thing other people can achieve with much less effort. Yes, there are the lazy. Then there are the oppressed, the victims, the "unlucky" if that's what you want to say.  I'll even admit that the Republicans peg us all together. We're the ones who want the handouts because we enjoy watching TV too much to go work, right? WRONG.

So see.... it goes both ways. It's all in how you look at it. Perspective.

I do want to say though, this is a victory so much bigger than a man himself. This is a victory for all of us, men and women, black, white, yellow, hot pink, whatever. If only Dr. King could have lived to see this day. Surely he is looking down and smiling. Our country is one step closer to really believing our fundamental values, just a little bit closer to - as a whole - truly believing that all are created equal. Because we are. The same blood in your veins is flowing in mine.

And even though Barack Obama pays his female staff a mere .80 to the dollar compare to his male staff (yes, I DO have an issue with that), Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Stanton and Anna Shaw and allll of our other beautiful grandmothers would be smiling, too. Why? Because we women aren't just voting. We're rocking the vote. We're statistically constistantly more likely to vote than men. (Ironic, boys?) WE are the ones who aren't ashamed to ensure that our voices are heard. We're going places. We're balancing work, family, education. The best of us? The guys are just afraid. But you wait and see - one day, we will have a female President. Maybe even an African-American female President. I hope and pray it's in my lifetime. Today's win makes it just a little closer.

So with this win, my heart is elated for my African-American friends, and I am so proud to be an American woman because I know in my heart that it's our turn next. Think Obama's switching things up? Put a woman in office. The right woman can change the world.

Tonight, I'm thankful for freedom. I'm thankful for equality. I'm thankful for acceptance and free choice and free speech and the right to vote to keep all of those rights. I'm thankful for America. I hope she remembers where she came from, and I hope she can be a shining example for the rest of the world - so many people are just starving for freedom. Don't take any of this for granted.

Yes, we can. Yes, we can change. Yes, we can.

Tuesday, November 04, 2008

Don’t vote.

Tuesday, October 07, 2008

1000 words doesn’t even come close…

via Flickr

Friday, September 26, 2008

rockin the vote!

Are you registered to vote? I know in my state, we have 30 days before the election which means if you're not registered, you should really be thinking about it.

My sister turned 18 last year and she's all set and ready to go on November 4.
I'm so proud of her!

Our great grandfathers died so that we could be free to live in a country like this. I know, it's not perfect. Far from it lately, actually, BUT, look around at the other countries.
We are blessed.

Fast forward a while to less than a century ago in 1920 when - after our grandmothers put up over 70 years of a fight - the 19th amendment was finally ratified in our country.




Today?

We have women running to be Presidential candidates and a woman running for Vice President. Our glass ceiling hasn't been completely shattered yet, but the more we stand up for our rights, the better chance our daughters have of seeing true gender equality.

I feel strongly about voting, and I don't want to hear you complain about the country if you decide to sit out this election.

Are you watching the Presidential debate tonight?
I'm DVR-ing it since I won't be home. It's not exactly choice entertainment for me, but I feel it my duty to watch. As strongly as I feel about voting, I believe it's worse for someone to carelessly and ignorantly submit their vote than to not vote at all.

When you fulfill your right, privilege and obligation,
don't take your decision lightly.

Remember, every single vote counts.

All of us can Rock the Vote.