Hand to Heart, Fingers to Keyboard in a Maine Kitchen

It's a wonderful life in Belfast. The tree lighting and visit from Santa Saturday at 5 p.m. 

at Post Office Square. Photo by Eric Sanders, a friend of Santa's.

"Santa is very popular," Eric wrote when he posted this epic photo on Facebook. 

Thank you, Eric, for this remarkable visual memory.

My friend Shirley and I try to text each other three gratitudes every morning. As life takes the wheel, and we allow that, we forget to stop and text. Today I will do it again.

But now, sitting at the kitchen island in the Mill House, a wonderful place built by my talented brother-in-law, I want to dash off a list before we clean up and scoot home, after seeing Dan's mother first.

Graces

1. Figgy. I hugged Fig, encircling her closely in my arms, at the Belfast tree lighting yesterday. This is a rarity lately, that hug. Her belted wool coat against my worn Tory Burch camel sweater. She is so petite compared to my 5'9". Funny how it happens that way. (Punchy stayed with Romeo and his family back in NJ and had a big Thanksgiving there.)
2. Abraham's Creamery. Wow, the jug of small-batch pumpkin kefir from the Belfast Co-op. That's why I love shopping there, the farm finds. Ingredients: Fresh goat milk, Maine organic maple syrup, pumpkin, pumpkin pie spice and cultures. It is so good. I see they make one with wild Maine blueberries when in season. Triple yum.
3. (I have to speed up now.) Bar Harbor. The long and rolling road to get there. Want to go back to Window Panes, where I bought a favorite tablecloth decades ago.
4. Belfast. Old-time charm, lampposts on the lane, strings of Christmas lights. Imagine all the important, loving, heart-warming and -wrenching letters and packages sent and received from that historic P.O. during wartime, peace time, Christmastime.
5. Mrs. Claus. Mingling at the tree lighting in her white knit poncho, long dress, red cap (Diane). Mrs. C. is always a delightful standby, kind and sweet.
6. Santa and Buddy the Elf. Two Hurley brothers arriving on fire engine, possibly M (it's a secret) and my Dan.
7. Thanksgiving. At Martha and Pat's, 24 people for dinner, though all could not fit at the table. (Overflow at kitchen island and in living room.) Ian's tender dinner rolls made from his mother's recipe, Sheila's turkey and gravy, Martha's and Erin's pumpkin pies, whipped cream by Leah, Pat's coffee.
8. This beautiful view. A pond, trees, birds, farmland. Hard to leave, as usual.

But we must.