In the Community

Well, folks, it's that time again. As we bid farewell to this year and this decade, I for one find it hard to grasp that we're hours away from the first day of 2011.

The results of the senior centre's activitiesfor the week ofDecember12to 18: Bridge: (Monday) 1stSally Tooke, 2nd Bette Leach, 3rd George Gillies. Bridge: (Friday) 1stJim Brown,2nd Bernice Carlson, 3rd George Gillies.

Christmas is about so many things: relationships, light, music and sharing. This past week I experienced one of the greatest joys of Christmas: time spent with family, friends and loved ones.

Merry Christmas to all my readers and thank you to the many who have expressed their appreciation for this column. In my search for a compelling Christmas story I found several. The test I set for this story was that it had to move me to tears.

Last week I attended our granddaughter's annual choir concert. Though jazz never has been my favourite musical style, the harmonies and instrumentations that came from the hands and mouths of those teens were jaw-dropping.

A young couple moved into a new neighbourhood. The next morning while they were eating breakfast, the young woman saw her neighbour hanging the wash outside. "That laundry is not very clean," she said. "She doesn't know how to wash correctly.

For us, one of the joys of the 2010 holiday season will be to watch the festivities through the eyes of Lucy. Lucy Christina, our newest grandchild, will be nine months old on the last day of December.

The father of five children had won a toy at a raffle. He called his kids together to ask which one should have the present. "Who is the most obedient?" he asked.

It's hard to believe but the new church year has begun already. We've changed the colors from green to blue and there are all kinds of strangely dressed characters dropping in to our church services. This year's Advent theme is "Fresh Starts".

Some words just seem to roll deliciously around the tongue while others, more guttural in sound and pronunciation, seem harsher in meaning and more deliberate in their elocution. Take, for example, the word "oxymoron".