Too cool and damp for any porch pondering but on my walks with Penelope, I watched the birds on the feeders and the squirrels running around the oaks trees. My oak tree has lost its leaves of sunshine and is now covered in brown leaves. The large oak tree at the end of the root broken sidewalk has lost all his ballerinas and is covered in large balls of mistletoe. Looks like big Christmas ornaments hanging on the high branches. Wished I’d taken a photo but it’s too dark now.

Mama used to get my brothers to shoot down stems of mistletoe with their pellet guns at Christmas and she would tie a red ribbon around the sprigs and make a kissing ball. I think I dragged Chief under the mistletoe a few times. Kissing under the mistletoe is a famous Christmas tradition that signifies love and romance. If you say no to a kiss under the mistletoe you will supposedly have bad luck. Mistletoe berries are poisonous to humans and dogs. Penelope and I will not be kissing anything under the mistletoe!

The overcast sky was so beautiful right before dusk. Father Sky had layered his clouds accordion style in grays and light purples and vanillas. They were so pretty and fluffy looking, each cloud resting on top of one another. When it came time for sunset, Mother Nature only had a small window of blue sky canvas and she dipped her brush in apricot and orange watercolors to paint the stage for her pageant of sunset. So pretty, the layers of color resting right on the horizon, ready for the sun to slide down and turn out the day’s light. Father sky held up the accordion clouds long enough to kiss the sun goodnight and hurry off for his duties waking up the moon and stars.

Do y’all save pocket change? I love to drop change from shopping down in my purse and then on a rainy day scoop the coins out and put them in my change jars. The jars were a gift of Vermont hot chocolate mix and are perfect for saving coins. I put silver change in one and the pennies in the other. When they get full I run them through the change counter at the bank. Only filled them once since I moved back home to Roanoke. Since I’m using and addicted to the grocery pick up services, I haven’t had much change to put it the jars.

Remember taking your children to the “only a dollar store?” If it was our money they were quick to pick out a few toys but it if was their “one dollars” they were spending, they took more time and agonized over their decisions.

I recently read a quote by Lillian Dickson. “Life is like a coin. You can spend it any way you wish, but you can only spend it once.” Our life is a coin, be careful how you spend it. But we aren’t all born the same coinage. Some of us experience life as shiny new pennies, hoping to be picked up and carried through life in a warm pocket, not willing to be brave and venture out and boldly experience life. Others of us work to shine the silver in the coin we’re given, making choices to live life to its fullest and experience all that life has to offer, to willingly and faithfully follow the path God has chosen for us.

We have a limited time on earth, we don’t know when our time will be over. We all have to be willing to spend our life’s coinage wisely. It’s the only coin we have. Some of us take life for granted, others put their coins in God’s hands, secure in the knowledge that God is in control. We can have faith in God, give our coins to him, and follow a path that he’s chosen or cast our coins in the piggy bank of life and hope it adds up to happiness.

“It’s only when we truly know and understand that we have a limited time on earth — and that we have no way of knowing when our time is up — that we will begin to live each day to the fullest, as if it was the only one we had.” — Elisabeth Kübler-Ross