Brain took note that I had set my alarm the other night and, as is always the case, it insisted on waking me two hours earlier.
Finally drifting back to sleep, I had just time for the start of a strange dream. I would like to have followed it, but of course the alarm sounded.
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In all the years I lived with Aunty Kay and even since her death, I don’t recall ever dreaming about her.
In yesterday’s illusion we were together but Kay seemed almost catatonic and I was dealing with the paperwork for a divorce from her problematic husband.
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As far as I know, divorce was not something Kay ever considered, but additionally the two of us were going to go back to England, which would have been most unlikely.
As there was no conversation, this was just a thought, something I knew. I also found myself thinking about Ray. What was going to happen to him? He made life hard but I suspect he was emotionally damaged. He messed me up, but I could never hate him and in the dream I felt sad for him.
Whatever would cause me to have such a dream now?
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Only Aunty Kay could have managed to keep a dog while serving as a WAAF.
Ray endeared himself to my aunt by making a fuss of her beloved Minxie. When they married, Kay got passage on a ship that sailed in a convoy to New York and Minxie had to be left behind with a friend.
Kay was 28 at the end of the war. The chance for a life in the USA would have seemed like a gift, but it must have torn her apart to leave her dog.
When I think too long about Kay I become very sad because of all the pain she experienced, especially at the end when she was separated from her sweet little dog Jazz.
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I must not let dreams cause me to dwell on sad thoughts.
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When I have not activated the alarm, my wake-up call comes from Muffin.
The moment her empty tummy stirs, she comes to stand by my bed with a cry that can only be interpreted as:
GET UP!
This always reminds me of my friend Tim who was one of the first tourists into China when the Bamboo curtain drew back.
In those early days, a wake-up call amounted to those two same words, followed by the phone being slammed down.
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It was very dark at 0530 yesterday, but there was a glimmer of snow. Fortunately, it was not amounting to anything and the roads were not icy, but we proceeded cautiously and I arrived with only two minutes to spare.
The smallest delay would have made us late!
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It being so dark, houses with Christmas lights were very noticeable. Had they been on all night? It seems a rather pointless waste of energy considering how few people are likely to enjoy them, but perhaps I’m just the Grinch.
The lights caused me to mention how good it is these days, to be spared from Christmas music. In my earlier life I was subjected to an over-abundance of it.
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One year at JFK, we were visited by a choir. They installed themselves somewhere behind the check-in area and they sang with gusto, at length.
With all the regular chaos of a busy airport at Christmas, it was completely over the top.
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So much for being spared this unwelcome sound. I entered the clinic and what did I hear?
Some songs/carols have a nice enough tune if you can block out the words, but many are plain obnoxious:
“Have a holly jolly Christmas…” etc
Mercifully, the volume was low,
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Before long we were on our way home and the scenery was a bit different with the Sun still low in the sky and only struggling to appear.
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“I’m not giving up my leaves, dammit!”
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Trees purchased and decorated in memory.
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We sometimes stop.
But not yesterday.
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River road.
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I love how snow settles in patterns.
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Another favourite tree!
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Unwanted stuff gets abandoned everywhere.
Strange though, to see a motor boat along a country road. It looks forlorn.
It’s been there for weeks.
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Another impressionist photograph. I simply could not get the camera to focus.
It was in the mood for landscapes.
Apparently.
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Oh the Sun did struggle!
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Farms are so much more picturesque in snow, I think.
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I am always slightly taken aback when I see a mail box stuck on a tree, or pole, seemingly in the middle of nowhere. Do they have to be registered with the mail company?
I guess they have to have their address registered and as long as the box is accessible to the delivery truck it can be attached to anything. Mail these days is mostly junk, sadly.
What a stunning sunrise photo – the colours are heavenly beautiful. Your Aunt Kay was a lovely woman (and I think it’s inevitable to have sad dreams sometimes). Farms are indeed beautiful in the snow. That makes me wonder what a wine farm here in SA would look like if it were covered in snow. And what will be the names of such wines: Maybe ‘Snowy White Sauvignon Blanc’ and ‘Red Reindeer Merlot’ …
I like the photo of your aunt with her dog. A pretty lady, and a dog lover. The perfect combination.
Tha abandoned motor boat must be worth quite a bit of money. It would be a good prompt for a short story. I have copied the photo to use as a header, let me know if that’s okay, Carolyn.
Best wishes, Pete.
Oh sure, Pete. I’d love that!