So it was a warm and wonderful Christmas, with both girls home for a few days. Now they're back in Boston, and George and I are holed up during Winter Storm Euclid -- when did they start naming the winter storms? A perfect time to reflect on more than one minor miracle at the close of 2012.
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| Drew on Church Street Christmas Eve |
First lost item: Christmas Eve the four of us enjoyed a lovely 8:00 candlelight service at the Unitarian church, the visual landmark at the top of Church St. in Burlington. City lights were all aglow to match our mood leaving the church. By the time we arrived home, I realized my favorite hat didn't make it back with me. I also couldn't find my cell phone, but it was buried in my purse and found in the morning. With the busy-ness of Christmas Day, dinner at George's sister's house, and staying up for the opening night showing of
Les Mis at 9:30, the lost hat slipped from my mind.
Second lost item: A few weeks ago I snagged the last three tickets to
West Side Story at the Flynn for Dec. 26th. Midway through Christmas Day it became clear I had absolutely no idea where I had stashed the envelope of tickets - for safe keeping - amid the holiday hubbub. So like any good Protestant, I prayed to St. Anthony (patron saint of lost items). Being married to a guy who survived 17 straight years of Catholic schooling, I have come to appreciate how handy and powerful those saints can be. But saints work in their own time...
Wednesday morning I woke early, enjoyed a leisurely cup of tea before beginning a methodical search through the piles of mail, magazines, holiday cards, gift wrap, storage unit boxes in our dining room -- the last place the tickets were seen. I was fully prepared to print out my email receipt and make a trip to the Flynn box office, plead my case, and hopefully get three replacement tickets. After 40 minutes of no luck, I breathed deep and started working my way through the 8-drawer sideboard. There, way at the back of drawer #6, was the elusive envelope. Crisis averted, and the show did go on!
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| Church Street lights are magical |
Meeting a friend for supper before the show last night, I remembered the hat. Was sad to think it was really gone, since it was hand-knit by my dear sister-in-law Marie Ramey (Mountain Medicine Hats). I thought I might put an ad in the paper or online offering a small reward, for the sentimental value only. On a whim I decided to park in the same spot on Pearl St. where we parked on Christmas Eve. The UU church was closed, but I looked all along the sidewalk and gutter beside the parked cars, and retraced our steps to and from the church two days earlier. No go.
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| Mother & daughter before the hat was lost |
At 10:30 PM, again aglow from the moving and balletic
West Side Story, George walked me to my car. We had driven separately to the show. I was lamenting my lost hat as I slid into the driver's seat. George said, "Is this your hat?" lifting the sweet little maroon cap off the parking meter. I swear it wasn't there at 6:00, but maybe I was looking down instead of up. Best day after Christmas gift ever. Gratitude to St. Anthony, my eagle-eyed husband, and the invisible hands of the Universe who keep us safe, sound and when temporarily lost, found!
