Shoveling Out

Snow began falling about 4:30 p.m. Friday night. Finally sometime between Saturday and Sunday, after 18 inches had fallen, the snow stopped. Butch and I shoveled snow a lot of the day Sunday and helped a couple neighbors and him get out. My car, being much farther from the road, was much harder; I think we shoveled a path that would have gotten it out but I'm not sure and left it sit.

Yesterday we did a couple errands by foot and walked all over Broadway; we called that exercise as we couldn't run on the snow/slushy roads or snow covered sidewalks and track.

But today I had an appointment in Harrisonburg and actually got the car out! Just knowing I can come and go again is such a relief. While in Harrisonburg we went to the track at EMU and got in a good hard run. Left at 9:00 a.m.; besides my appointment, running, picking up some groceries, and a couple other errands, I got home at 2 p.m.

Butch has an appointment in Harrisonburg, so we plan to run at EMU one more time before the university is locked down for the holiday. After that I'm hoping we can run outside again.

I sure hope this isn't a sign of the Virginia winter to come.

Christmas Letter & End of Year Thoughts

There have been a couple major changes in the family this year that I am pleased to share with you.

Anna Maria has been accepted to a low-residency MFA program in both nonfiction and fiction writing at the Vermont College of Fine Arts. Classes begin at the end of December. She was also a runner-up in Ruminate magazine’s 2009 short story contest and wrote a monthly gardening column for a local newspaper.

Her husband Steven still teaches visual and communication arts at Eastern Mennonite University, but is now the chair of that department. He also continues freelance photography -- shooting weddings, senior pictures, publicity photos for musical artists and whatever else his lens finds to do. His biggest freelance successes were getting nature photos published in Orion magazine, an environmental magazine, and in Blue Ridge Country, a regional magazine.

Eliza Grace, now eight, and Magdalena Hope, now six years old, still have sleepovers and campouts with “Gramma Nete”, whom they have re-nicknamed “Graham Cracker” and visit often. Both enjoy taking ballet classes and drawing.

Ana (Sam) and Chad Updyke’s son Thaddeus is now a year old and walking everywhere and climbing on everything. Chad is an electrician for a salt manufacturing plant in Watkins Glen. They moved into their first home and now live in Millport, New York.

I am still employed part-time as an adjunct paralegal professor at a vocational technical college in Harrisonburg, Virginia, and do a little bit of freelance writing and editing. I appreciate the support and encouragement from my friend and neighbor Butch. We run together four days a week. He also stayed with me when I was in the hospital for three days this year with pneumonia and fixed meals for me upon my return home. Then, too, we enjoyed a trip to Florida where we ran a half marathon together, and to the Virginia Beach area where we also saw the Jamestown settlement, Williamsburg and Yorktown.

May God bring blessings and joy to each of you this holiday season and throughout 2010.