small pleasures

What surprised me about the garden today wasn’t the lack of people—I’d been counting on that; even though the garden’s free throughout the winter months, only the diehards show up after a snowfall.  What struck me was the stillness and the silence—the strange lack of birds!  I’d see movement out of the corner of my eye, but when I turned it was only a stale leaf drifting across the snow.  Then, midway through the garden, I saw my old friend—a bright flash of red in the thicket, and a soft chirp to say, “I’m here!”  I love cardinals.  I walked on and saw another, or perhaps the same bird…I like to think I have a “friend” in the garden, but it’s arrogant, really, to think other creatures notice us at all.  Now I’m back, I’ve had a cup of cocoa, and I’ve turned on the lights on my lovely tree…I learned yesterday that I don’t have to move out at the end of the year, which is a blessing.  I hung my little wreath on the front door, turned on the jazzy Xmas music, and smiled to myself for a while.  Met my neighbor in the elevator and we laughed at how some people pity us for having no plans this Xmas.  For me, no plan IS the plan!  Just some peace & quiet…and maybe some yummy Indian food…here’s the before and after:

You can’t see my lovely angel made of gold wire, and my hand-painted decorations from Panama…you can almost see my purple elephant at the top…same decorations, year after year, yet I never tire of sitting and gazing at my tree.  Tomorrow we head downtown to see the giant tree at Rockefeller Plaza…and the many store windows.  If only I didn’t have to share that experience with a few thousand tourists…