Friday, December 31, 2010

Happy New Year Everyone!

I hope that the holiday season has treated everyone well. Ours was lovely but has ended on a sad note.

This Christmas my husband and I traveled to his hometown where his grandmother was celebrating her 100th Christmas!! The grandkids had all pooled money and donated 101 gifts to the fireman's toys for tots program in her name, and the family gathered from all over North America to party with Lily. There were 18 great-grandchildren present, as well as all the grands plus spouses, and her own children and their spouses. It was a lovely way to honor a lady who I personally feel embodies the true spirit of Christ and Buddha - loving everyone equally and having compassion for all without judgement.

After a few days of happy familial chaos, we returned home. Being from a very small family myself, large family gatherings really wear me out - so I was happy to be home and able to unwind. My waistline was also grateful to be relieved of the constant temptation of mountains of freshly baked cookies and candies that my mother-in-law always has piled on every available surface of her home during the holidays!

The next day was very sad, as my elderly bearded dragon, Little Man, began displaying troubling symptoms and was obviously uncomfortable. That trip to the vet ended up being his last, as it was determined the most compassionate option was to let him go. Although he did not actually display any symptoms of being towards The End until then, I had been intuiting for the past few months that he was ready to move on - just a very subtle shift in his energy and demeanor. When he showed those symptoms I knew in my heart it was his time.

I'm very sad to have lost him, but happy to have been able to release his spirit. I know he is being well taken care of on the other side. He was almost 12 years old, which was quite an advanced age for a bearded dragon (the vet says on average they live 6-8 years, though of course they can live longer with proper husbandry). So, he did have a long life. He will be missed dearly. However, he is on a very exciting adventure for this New Year and I will think fondly of him often.

So, for our own celebration, we're just going to sit down with some Guinness and some movies to make us laugh. I can think of no better way to ring in the New Year than cuddled on the couch with my husband and my pup, Voodoo.

One of the movies we will be watching tonight is Sita Sings the Blues! It's a fantastic and unique film that is freely distributable...so I will be embedding it here as a New Years gift to you!



On the business front, readings, consultations, and product orders will resume starting on Monday!

Thank you so much for reading this past year, and I hope to see more of you in 2011.

Thursday, December 16, 2010

The Digital Story of the Nativity

This was too fun not to share! Enjoy and have a blessed Solstice, no matter what path you follow!