Close enough

I'm not really a Christmas sort of monkey. I don't decorate but I do bake. I like giving gifts (especially to friends' kids . . . and even better if it is something I remember playing with in the lab) but usually can't think of anything I really need in return. I appreciate the opportunity to remember friends, catch up with folks, and relax a bit. But that's about it.

This year, I've gotten to participate, in small ways, in making Christmas good for some other people. And, I have to say, SMLF are some of the most decent, giving people you'll ever want to meet.

First, one of the monkeys has always wanted to enter the local flotilla event. The logistics have always been a problem in the past.

This year, the monkeys or spouses of monkeys made it happen. And, the SMLF gathered on the banks of our local river to be the noisiest monkeys ever. (They even made the mistake of giving me an airhorn, heh heh.) It was a fun and groovy event, and absolutely tickled the monkey to no end to see something she's always wanted to do come together. Also, she totally appreciated that it took a community of folks working together, and that may have been the best part.

The second project is coming together and should happen soon. Many of the SMLF member all get their hair cut by the same person. Her husband has a progressive disease, and she knows that this year is the last Christmas she will have with her husband, the last year her children will spend with their father. She mentioned to one of the monkeys recently that she wanted to set up a specific scene in her yard, with lights, for her husband to enjoy. But, she doesn't have the time or the money.

The monkeys discussed it over lunch, and that afternoon had secured the materials and lights needed to make it happen. The paint is nearly dry . . . and will soon be set up in her yard.

Again, the coming together of a community is what makes me feeling warm and fuzzy this season.