accentuating the positive

It has been a typical Monday morning here. It started out with a cold, heavy rain on the way to work. Then, as I expected, there were lots of problems waiting for me once I got here. So, since time is short, instead of grousing about the week that I wasted spent at my in-laws in Oklahoma, I thought I would accentuate the positive and show you a few of the pleasantries of my trip.

I was greeted each morning by a beautiful sunrise:

I was like a "dog whisperer" to these two little stray pitbull pups. This effort was not much appreciated by the residents who didn't like me encouraging them to hang around, but it was the thing I looked most forward to each morning, after the sunrise:

It is a coincidence that my husband's parents and my parents all grew up within about a 20 mile radius of each other (although they were never acquainted), so while I was there I was able to visit the cemetary where my grandparents and aunt are buried and put fresh flowers on their graves. It was very sad for me because we just lost our grandmother 3 years ago this January, at the age of 91. But I was happy to be able to go and pay my respects, especially at this time of year because Thanksgiving always reminds me of her and all of the years that we spent together.

It's funny, there are many aspects that I dread when making this trip, but at the same time I noticed that this year I felt an odd sense of comfort in the routine. I guess when going to the same place from year to year, and finding the same people are there behaving in exactly the same ways, that in a strange way I am comforted by the predictability of it all. But more than that, from so much of my family's history taking place in that part of the country, and from the many happy times spent there with my siblings and grandparents, I feel such a strong resonance when I am there. In some ways I feel like I am home, and it's a very different feeling than when I am anywhere else.

P.S. We didn't get home until late Saturday night. I was hoping to spend Sunday catching up on some long-overdue email (no internet all week...argh), but unfortunately this was pre-empted by all the unpacking and trying to get things ready for the coming week. So my apologies, I have been thinking about you throughout the trip. Hopefully this evening will be a little less busy and will allow me time to catch up (fingers crossed).