
“The secret of happiness is to count your blessings while others are adding up their troubles.” ~ Author unknown
A couple of weeks ago I read an article about a lady who keeps two bowls of river rocks on her fireplace mantel, one filled with white rocks, and one filled with darker rocks. Every time something positive happens in her day, she switches one of the dark rocks with a white one to symbolize the positive occurrence, and each time something bad happens she takes the stone out and puts it back in its original bowl.

The 21st of December is the day of Yule. The longest night. It is the celebration of the return of the light, and a first shimmering hope that spring will come to the land with the increase of daylight in the months to come.
The first of the winter storms hit Northern California today. The sky opened up and torrents of water poured out of the sky, like a waterfall in the desert. After a long, dry summer, the ground is drinking it in, but not fast enough. The earth is so starved for moisture, it’s as if it’s afraid to drink too fast and wind up drunk. Flooding is inevitable.