Snapshots by Gloria Freeland - Nov. 29, 2001
A snapshot look at life
After thinking about writing a column for the Riley Countian and discussing it with editor Romelle VanSickle, I decided to try it. Of course, once I decided that, I had to come up with a name for it. Hmmm . . . what to call it, what to call it . . . "Personal pages." No, no, not quite right. "Seasons of life." Not too bad. I like the verse in Ecclesiastes: "To everything there is a season," and I enjoy the changing seasons and comparing what's happening in nature with the seasonal changes in my own life. But "seasons of life" seemed too broad.
So I decided to call it "Snapshots." My family and friends tolerate me snapping dozens (well, more like hundreds) of shots during the year of holidays, birthdays, 4th of July barbecues, school programs and every-day life. They're used to me stopping along the road to take pictures of the Flint Hills dotted with redbuds in the spring, churning storm clouds in the summer, burgundy, gold and copper grasses on the Konza Prairie in the autumn, and frost-laden bales of hay in the winter.
This column will deal with the mundane and magnificent aspects of life as I see them in "snapshot" views.
So what's the snapshot this week?
While everyone else is out shopping for gifts and getting their homes spruced up for Christmas, I'm still on low gear, enjoying the bright autumn colors and cornucopia bedecking my table and the construction-paper, pinecone and toilet-paper-roll turkeys my daughters made in school through the years. I always drag my feet a bit as Thanksgiving rolls over into Christmas, but this year I seem to be much worse. The weather has had a part to play in my reluctance to let go. After all, with temperatures in the 60s and above, there was no frost on the pumpkin to clue me in that the holidays were rapidly approaching.
I love Christmas, but Thanksgiving has always been a special day - a time to take stock of the blessings of the year. It's just too bad it's squeezed between the hype of Halloween and the over-spending of Christmas. So, for another week, I'm going to keep the miniature pumpkins and gourds on our table as I serve the leftover turkey, dressing and cranberries from our Thanksgiving Day meal.
Once next weekend - the first weekend of December - comes along, I'll be ready to move into Christmas.
(Gloria Freeland and her husband, Art Vaughan, live in Keats. Their daughters, Mariya and Katherine, attend Riley County schools.)