another day

Got up at my usual time, dressed quickly and headed out the door with the dog.  Totally typical.

Our house is at the top of a small hill, and, when it was originally built, back in the 1930's, it must have had a spectacular Mt. Hood view, which is now obscured by neighboring trees.  You have to walk 50 yards to the street before you get a clear view to the east.

This morning, the cloud bank just to the right of the newly-white mountain had that luminous border that said the Sun's appearance was happening quite soon.  While the dog sniffed around, I stood for several minutes, appreciating the scene:  a few birds above, leaves drifting down, the steam from my breath, the increasing sense of the beginning of a new day.

The Sun appeared to rise above the cloud bank (a persuasive illusion indeed) and its light and promise of warmth filled the scene.  A miraculous, everyday thing.

This morning I am attending the funeral of a wonderful person my own age, who died suddenly on Tuesday.  The world goes on; glad I stopped for a moment.  Next, coffee.  Little pleasures.