Here it is, almost Christmas, and I’ve darn near got all my shopping done. Just a few things for Karyn and that’s it! We’ve been busy remodeling our kitchen, as December and January there aren’t many shows here in Michigan. Twenty-plus years since we moved into our cozy little house in Rochester, and we’d been saving up for this for quite some time. So we decided that would be our Christmas gift to each other this year. 

So as I was putting the first coat of mud on a doorway that I reframed, it struck me that every day is like Christmas somehow. Even the bad ones. There are always little gifts under the tree, if you just keep an eye out for them. Like the shot (above) I took down in the desert near Lee’s Ferry.

I was walking across the desert floor, and my eye just happened to catch the new purple blooms peeking out of the gravel. The dead mesquite branches provided counterpoint, illustrating the cycle of life. It was a gift, just a minor vision really, but I had the presence of mind to make a photograph.

Other gifts are even simpler. Like not running out of gas when your tank is on empty and you have just one more stop to make before the stores close. Or that good morning wake-up smile. Or having enough gas in your tank to make it to work without having to fill up first. We all have lots to be thankful for this Christmas — I know it’s been said before, but let’s be thankful for all the little gifts we take for granted.