Iluminated

This photo is of Compass Rose, all decked out with her twinkling snowflakes and her strings of blue lights. She is the only boat decorated in our corner of the marina. Somehow leaving her all dark and alone didn't seem right. Now she just seems happy to me.

And I'm feeling happy and content too. But I don't want to get complacent in that place. It's easy for me to let the decorations of the lights pretty up and mask some of the stuff that lurks beneath the surface.

I know that this is the season of high expectations. And those expectations can easily be shattered. I think that's particularly true with visits to family or keeping in touch with friends. I called a family member the other day to tell them that their present had been mailed, but that I received notice that UPS didn't leave the package because no one was home. Instead, they dropped it at the nearby post office. I received some criticism about why I shouldn't use UPS. And that they would have to go to the post office now. I thought WTF but said "Well, I hope that you enjoy it and have a good Christmas".

So it's easy to slide back to old indignations and self-pity behaviors. I laugh when I think about what Eckhart Tolle writes: “If you think you’re enlightened, then go and live with your parents for a week.”

So what I'm doing is not attaching too much importance to the good times or the bad times. Rather, I'm seeing if I can keep an even keel. I'm limiting expectations, minding my own business and staying with in the middle of the road without reeling off into the ditches.

I'm going out on the boat this weekend. The forecast is for warm temperatures with breezy conditions. I don't imagine there will be many people on the island, probably just a few campers. And the weather will be nice for long walks on the beach.

Enjoy your Saturday!