Blue December..........

I always try to get into the Christmas Spirit this time of year but there is always a little part of me that is blue. Ten years ago I lost both of my grandmothers within a couple of days of each other. The death of my maternal grandmother was a blow that shook me to my core. I still think about her all the time.... I am even tearing up just thinking about how much I miss her. My paternal grandmother's death was a complete surprise and the way that I learned of her passing was cruel and unforgivable. She had been staying in an assisted living center and although she was old and frail, we did not expect her to go so suddenly. I received a message on my phone telling me that they needed to know what to do with my grandmother's body. This is not the kind of message you leave on some body's phone when the person you are leaving the message with has no idea that the person is even dead. Brutal!!!

This weekend there was a horrible car wreck here in Houston. It has been terribly wet and foggy here for the last week or so. Apparently a truck going at a high rate of speed went off the road early Sunday morning, struck a tree, crumpled into nothingness, and then caught on fire..... burning those in the car into such an unrecognizable state that it took two days and dental records for the authorities to figure out who they were. Three young lives were lost in that deadly wreck and one of them turned out to be our neighbor. Jonathan would have turned 20 yesterday. Heartbreaking. I live in a small rural neighborhood with about 12 families on my street so everybody pretty much knows everybody else's business. I can't imagine the grief that his family must be going through right now. So sad......

So with the holidays upon us, take a moment to reflect on your lives and all the loved ones (including pets) that you have in it. Be grateful and don't take a moment for granted. Sometimes we get so caught up in our own lives and all the trivial ups and downs of our daily routine that we don't appreciate what we have and who we have in our lives.