Happy New Year! Where did the time go? I have the house in a mess...putting away decorations, pitching old, and I mean really old, Christmas cards and notes from at least years ago.
Christmas Eve get together was fun! The little kids were so glad to see each other, and could hardly wait until after supper when presents would be opened. We were all at Julie and Steve’s for supper, and everyone was visiting, corralling youngsters, and then it was so quiet.
I asked, “Did the kids all go to the basement?” They did and some of their parents were down there too, then it wasn’t long before noise exploded as presents were sorted and handed out.
We always have gifts that remind us of things that happened to us over the year. For instance, I was accused of giving a cute (but ugly) neck scarf, but it wasn’t me this year. Sometimes it’s a weird looking purse, or a book about a Kat Kong that looks identical to the one at our house that slashed my hand this year jumping for a piece of bread. This year it was a heavy package containing a big chunk of burned wood that had plugged the combine head when they were harvesting beans. I found a children’s book about Teenage Ninja Turtles that went in Erik’s package... they were a favorite of his when he was little. Now he can read it to his boys.
There was a sadness there too. Dean always enjoyed sitting and watching everyone else open presents, and we always had to remind him he had a stack to open. This year there was only an empty chair.
But, there was joy. A year ago, Steve and Cathy and all of us were praying and wondering how\\if he would be able to recover from the terrible stroke he had on the 14th. This year he was visiting, and enjoying all the chaos (I think) that was going on, had been able to work this summer and fall, and is still doing rehab work to gain all he can. So much to be thankful for.
Cathy had posted on Facebook the words to a song by Ashley Cooke called “It’s Been a Year.” it goes like this,” And I ain’t sayin’ it ain’t been a good one, It’s been a ‘did a lot more than I thought I could’ one, It’s been 365 record lows and record highs. Loving and losing, fun and confusing, praying and shifting gears ...It’s been quite a year.” Yep, been quite a year! May all of you have a good 2026. Sharon Sharon Chenoweth is a resident and farmer of McDonough County. Her column focuses on rural life and will be featured every other week in the Community News Brief Friday Edition.
