Christmas Week

Christmas, in the traditional worldly sense most of us think of includes, gathering, family, gift exchanges and lots of food (etc.) and can sometimes prove difficult and is not always the joyous season we hope for or envision. There are varying  emotions, logistics, nuances, and perspectives for each of us when it comes to celebrating and experiencing Christmas. When I saw this bench it enveloped it all and I believe it could tell each of our stories. It provides the empty canvas to pour your Christmas heart onto it. I will let you take it from there.

I fully believe in celebrating Christmas all week and truthfully all year. I am known to listen to Christmas music year round. It calms my heart and fills me with joy. Thanks to my sweet mom for helping with the celebrations this week. She sent me gifts to open every day for the 12 days leading up to Christmas. The first gift was a little statue of Christ, quite appropriate! The second gift was this book, "The Boys in the Boat" which I highly recommend. What a wonderful true story of courage, grit, tenacity, faith, relationships, change, perseverance, and triumph! The book is a true story about a rowing team out of Seattle in the 1930's. That is all I will tell you because you really should read the book for yourselves.
Kingston Upon Thames is mentioned in the book because of the amazing rowing conditions and history of rowing in the area. I walk the banks of the Thames often and I don't think there has been a day when there were not rowers on the water, regardless of the weather. My walk yesterday did not disappoint although it was all about the girls in the boats, go girls!.

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The semester has wrapped up, that was a fast few months!! I still have plenty to do during the holiday break but I am grateful for all I have learned so far. It has been amazing! The instructors are wonderful and so good to work with and the other students are exceptional. I'm sure the next semester will be packed but I do look forward to all it holds.
I believe I have landed on my focus for my project/dissertation and I am thrilled about it! There will likely be some dialing in because it is so easy to go big. I am excited about the various ways I will be able to apply this knowledge, research and experience going forward in life. So cool!

I have been here over 3 months now and it feels more and more like home. It is easy to forget that I live across the pond from family, friends, and all I have known throughout my life. Technology is wonderful and weekly Zoom calls have kept me in touch with my family. It's great to find joy no matter where I am or in whatever I am doing.

I heard this the other day and it has made me think about myself and my choices in a different light. 
"There are two types of people in the world, the people from somewhere and the people from anywhere, or so it goes…

British author David Goodhart coined the terms “Somewheres” and “Anywheres” 
According to Goodhart, the "Somewheres" are people who are more locally rooted and conservative as opposed to the "Anywheres", who are globalists that are well adapted to change. The Somewheres attribute a large part of their identities to their place of origin or local communities and are less likely to move. The Anywheres, on the other hand, form an identity based on their life experiences rather than a place of origin.

Super interesting right? What would you say you are, a somewhere, or an anywhere?

​I do miss a few things from home like the best hugs from the littles (or not so littles as they are growing up fast!) in my family, pumpkin anything, snow, family gatherings, the mountains (so I know my directions), and occasionally a car. No matter where I go or what I face I know that I have a loving Heavenly Father watching over me and I cannot do it without Him.

Another lovely gift my mom (who knows me so well) was this pumpkin butter. Best gift ever!! I will savor it and make it last because it is amazing. Thanks mom!!! I just needs some fresh baked bread, which is happily available on almost every corner.

​Cheers!