Three beautiful things from my past week:

1. After 2020, I will never take Christmas with my family for granted again. We had a low-key celebration with a tasty feast, phone calls with family who live elsewhere, and gifts in front of the fireplace.

2. Because I wrote about Christmas piano parties during the Virtual Advent Tour, I was inspired to clear off the piano bench, pull out some sheet music, and butcher my way through sight-reading some holiday tunes. I have a keyboard that’s been sitting in my closet for years and I should see if I can find the power adaptor that will allow me to use it. It’s not the same, but music is a good thing.

3. I arrived home this afternoon after more than a week away to a beautiful day, a cat who thinks my return is the best thing ever (he’s lying on my arms as I type this), and tea and peanut butter toast after stopping at the library to pick up my assorted holds.

Three beautiful things from my last week:

1. As one of the top teams in the league, we have a bye week for the first week of this season’s playoffs. I complained to two of my friends that that seemed unfair. You’d rather, one asked, that we’d lost games so we could play sooner? Fair point, well made.

2. I signed up for a second night of volleyball thinking I’d be playing with strangers. But as it turns out, two of my teammates want to join me, so we have a little mini group.

3. As always the residents of northern New Jersey who live along the Garden State Parkway did a wonderful job lighting up their homes and neighborhoods for those of us traveling afar. Thank you for making our trip so enjoyable.

Three beautiful things from my past week:

1. Susan invites me to come to the book sale she’s helping to run for her daughter’s elementary school and pitch in for a while. It’s nice to be useful — and to have some of my Christmas shopping benefit others.

2. Anna invites me to come see her office before our volleyball game. She works for a nonprofit that helps get books into teachers’ hands and she’s decorated a wall of with spreads from unbound picture book proofs. Our friend Neal joins us and he draws on her white board for her.

3. I walk toward the Georgetown Safeway to get cat litter, but en route, stop at a playground to swing for a while and then at Book Hill to watch the tail end of the sunset.

How about you? What’s been beautiful in your world lately?

Three beautiful things from my past week:

1. One of my teammates brings me an ornament for our tree. “I picked it because its skirt reminded me of your Halloween costume.”

2. My brother and his partner were visiting my folks and so I got to talk to Josh, as well as my parents when I called on Wednesday.

3. I did a little Christmas shopping on the Hill this evening, and decided to talk home across town, since it was dry and warm. I passed the Eastern Market tree, the Congressional tree, and the White House tree (not as gaudy as many past years), as well as the ice skating at the sculpture garden.

How about you? What’s been beautiful in your world lately?

Three beautiful things from my past week:

1. Karen and I pushed our get-together back a day to let her cold pass. It ended up being a much nicer day to be outside, and she was feeling well enough to stroll the length of the riverwalk.

2. Rudi and I attended a virtual talk about doing a smarter job search, and the speaker had several suggestions each of us found helpful. I took down her contact information, in case it makes sense for either of us to reach out in the new year.

3. My friend Anna and her partner Greg came over for supper and a board game night. They introduced us to a new game and brought a second one as a gift, which was both unexpected and quite kind.

How about you? What’s been beautiful in your world lately?

Three beautiful things from my past week:

1. Watching World Cup soccer on big screens at an outdoor party in the middle of Dupont Circle.

2. Seeing holiday lights as we drove north.

3. Our new car takes regular gas, not premium, like the last one.

How about you? What’s been beautiful in your world lately?