The Goose Looks Over Her Shoulder

Mother Goose is not the kind of person who goes around honking her own horn. I prefer to perform my good deeds and random acts of kindness with a great degree of anonymity and humility. My accomplishments come and go as swiftly as the wind, and like the wind, I remember them not.

However, I’ve been blessed with a beautiful daughter who not only has the memory of an elephant, but the heart of an angel. On the recent celebration of the birth of this goose, she gave me a gift which will last a lifetime — a love letter listing all of the goals I’ve met in 2012.

It is not my intention to brag about my achievements, but to encourage you to believe in your own selves in the coming year. When we allow hopes and dreams to grow, they bear fruit of great sweetness. If a goose such as myself can do this, that and the other thing, imagine what YOU can do? Please allow me to share excerpts with you.

From Jessi:

“You continued your blog, gaining friends, followers and support for your hilarious and inspiring stories.

You trained for months so you could run and complete a 5K race. And even after, when your ankles hurt so bad, you cared for us.

You brought new life to Blue Star Banners; bringing a very tangible symbol for people’s love and pride in their military sons and daughters.

You Mystery Shop now! And while some interactions seem small, people get a sense of purpose from helping another find the soy nog!

You were hired to tutor kids in west side schools!

You maintained amazing friendships and closeness with your friends and your family — including fostering a closer relationship with Grandpa.

AND…on top of all this, you encouraged your husband and kids to never give up, to set goals, and to always believe that the best outcome is possible.

Thank you for a truly inspiring year, Momma.”

Isn’t she a fine and loving daughter to write all of that sweetness about Mother Goose? I love her very much…

We could also spend some time today reflecting on a few of Jessi’s own 2012 achievements and accomplishments:

She graduated from Columbia College Chicago with honors!

She worked a bad job for a year so that she could pay off her credit card!

She applied to the graduate school of University of Illinois in Chicago, and was one of eleven candidates selected for their Urban Planning and Policy Program.

She spent three hours behind the scenes at the Brookfield Zoo Marine Mammals department, working as a guest trainer for the seals and the dolphins. Here are some pictures from that wonderfully amazing event this past Saturday:

There she is squatting down next to the water. She got to KISS a dolphin!

In the course of her Wild Encounter, Jessi interacted with a leopard seal who PAINTS as therapy for her neurological disorder.

An unforgettable experience with the trainers and marine mammals at the zoo.

Dear readers, Mother Goose wishes you and your families a new year full of hope and dreams, joy and peace. But mostly I wish you a new year full of love. God bless you all.

The Sailor Sons Smiled

In recent weeks, Mother Goose requested a GIGANTIC favor of her readers and fans: to flood the mailbox of her sailor sons with Christmas cards from around the nation and around the globe.

We are happy to report that “Operation: Christmas Card” was an ENORMOUS success! My sons only check their mailbox a couple times a week because usually there’s nothing in there — there’s nothing more depressing than an echoing mailbox at Christmas.

But when they checked it, they found ten cards! They were happily surprised, and didn’t know a single person who sent them!

The next time they checked their mail there were twenty cards all stuffed inside!

On Christmas Day, they reported to me that they had fifty more cards in their mailbox! They laughed and smiled at the wonder of it all!

Just a few of the cards they received…

There were cards from school children with the kindest sentiments of encouragement and Christmas love. There were cards from retired Navy officers. There were gift cards and goodie boxes. There were handmade ornaments — those sweet popsicle stick creations that always bring joy on the tree.

Wherever you are, dear readers, Mother Goose is honking a delightful “thank you” in your general direction. If a goose flies over your house honking today, it’s me. If a goose is near your pond flapping her wings and honking for joy, it’s me. If you see goose tracks in the snow, that was me dancing a jig of great happiness.

With all my heart, I thank you for making a difference. My sons will never forget Christmas 2012 because of your gracious thoughtfulness and consideration to them. My sailor sons smiled on Christmas Day.

The Christmas “WOW Factor”

Mother Goose has been “hunkering down” this past week — so very occupied with my Christmas preparations. I seem to cram all of Advent into the week before Christmas. In the past seven days, the goose family has been so busy it makes my feathery head just spin!

I have said “Wow!” over and over again.

Last Saturday, our family all attended the Elgin Symphonic Orchestra’s holiday extravaganza, “Let It Snow” followed by an 11:00 pm dinner at our favorite Mexican restaurant, La Campana.

Benny, Jessi and Eric at La Campana

The very next day we gathered to celebrate the birthday of Mother Goose which proved to be all about pie.

The wonders of pie…

There was holiday decorating.

There were nearly 10,000 cookies to bake, pack and ship to family around the globe. There were Christmas cards to sign and mail to friends near and far. Of course, there was shopping for the perfect gifties and wrapping of the perfect gifties.

Secret stash…

There were fun surprises lurking around many corners.

Mother Goose snuggling up with Santa Claus.

And it all comes down to the most major celebration of all on December 25th.

Mother Goose has tried to maintain a sense of order and peace and joy throughout these days of prep. I have believed in decorum. and I have believed Christmas music. Though personal conflict might come in many sizes and shapes, we try to keep our tidings glad and our days merry and bright.

Of course, we also remember the mundane tasks which must be accomplished (the laundry, the dishes, the bathroom cleaning chores), but the priority must be the remembrance of the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus.

Yesterday, Mother Goose spent hours sequestered in her bedroom with only the company of wrapping paper, tape, scissors and shopping bags full of the spoils of several trips out into the mobs and gangs of shoppers. My youngest gosling spent the day coughing and sneezing on the couch with the Snuggie she received last Christmas Eve. She found solace on the Disney channel and with her friends on Nickelodeon.

Taking a break from her wrapping exertions, stiff and sore Mother Goose would occasionally check in on the sick girl’s health and fill her glass of ice water. AnnaRose was a good patient, and Mother Goose accomplished great and noble things for the good of Christmas Day…

Today, this youngest in the flock queried Mother Goose about those presents which had been the day-long obsession for her mother: “And why don’t you just bring them all down and put them under the Christmas tree?”

With tired, red-rimmed eyes, Mother Goose looked at her little girl and patiently replied, “We’re going for the WOW Factor, my dear daughter.”

And yes, indeed, it is always the WOW Factor, isn’t it, my dear readers? The children awake on Christmas morning and scamper to the tree. The piles of colorfully wrapped presents are here, there and everywhere around the tree. Skyscrapers of gifts stacked to the ceiling. What was a simple and empty beautiful space the night before has become a veritable and magical and majestical Mount Everest of joy and fun, dreams realized, and wishes come true.

Santa Claus has been here, and the dawning of this day is good as gold.

The happy laughter and shrieks of delight as the gifts are opened, the camera flashes, the silliness of the shredded wrapping paper all over the floor, WOW!

The endless plates of cookies and candies, WOW.

The tables laden with pies and centerpieces, the sumptuous Christmas dinner, the roast beast and the Yorkshire pudding, the fruit cakes, the flowing wine and eggnog, WOW.

Perhaps there will be fresh Christmas snow, WOW.

So much WOW everywhere you look.

But the biggest WOW of all is that God loves us so much that He sent His Son to earth as a baby boy who grew up to be a perfect man. He came to live among people, to heal us of our sins and sicknesses, to teach us about His Father and to make a way for us to live for eternity in heaven. From the cradle to the cross, Christmas is all about Jesus.

Jesus is The Christmas WOW Factor.

Merry Christmas with love from Mother Goose! WOW!

Mother Goose Prays

For the past twenty-five years, I’ve been Mother Goose to six beautiful children of my very own. Together, they constitute my largest reservoir of smiles. When I’m having a day that isn’t going according to my own personal expectations, I look at one or more of these young ones and suddenly nothing else matters except that I connect and love on my babies.

That’s when the smile of Mother Goose stretches wide and her eyes crinkle up with mirth. The first sign of my laugh lines began when my firstborn looked into my eyes — the laugh lines just get deeper everyday. Do you have laugh lines? Those curves in the skin of your face that miraculously connect the corners of your nose with the space on either side of your mouth? Do you hide them? Do you call them wrinkles? Mother Goose wears them as proudly as a medal of honor.

My puny words cannot express enough of my heartbreak for the moms and dads whose laugh lines are shadowed now by their tears and their sorrow and their loss.

My heart breaks these days as I consider what so many dear families are facing now after madmen stole away the lives of their babies. There is no evil as black as that which blasts away at innocent little children. There is no pain as deep as losing a child — nothing compares.

And the media will buzz for days about what should be done, and what can we do to prevent this from happening, and the politics of gun control will shout back and forth. And then life will get back to normal for most of us, and we’ll remember … but mostly we’ll just want to forget.

I beg you, do not forget. Use the tears, the pain, the grief, the images and the feelings of hopelessness and helplessness to motivate you. Each of us in our own way, in our own worlds, in our various circles can instigate change. Some of us in small ways, some of us in large ways — but all change is important and necessary to make this world a safer and better place for our children.

Mother Goose prays. Every morning before I turn on my typewriter, I spend time with the Lord. We go over the day a little bit, but mostly He listens to my concerns, my fears, my challenges, my complaints. Then He takes me by the hand, and we proceed to travel through the day together.

This morning I sent out an email to the mothers of children in my daughter’s fourth grade class — it was an invitation to come to the home of Mother Goose to pray on Monday morning. Being together, nothing fancy or formal — just praying for our precious ones and the families of the fallen across our country, but especially in Portland and Newtown.

In the world’s broad scope, maybe a few moms sitting around a table praying doesn’t sound like a solution to a horrible problem. Mother Goose believes that it’s the best thing to do right now. Wherever you are on Monday at 9:00 a.m., please feel free to join us. There is power in prayer.

There will be hero stories that come out of this tragedy, there will be stories of hope and stories of great love. Watch for them and cling to them. Love is the great conqueror. In this strange and scary story of life, Love wins.

Visit Stella’s for the Fun of It

Recently Mother Goose and her husband went for a long drive in the Goosemobile — just to get a fresh perspective on our Christmas preparations and take a break from the whirlwind of shopping. We landed in the quaint little town of Lyons. Of course, Mother Goose was a little hesitant to get out of the car in a town nearly named after a ferocious carnivore (goosenivore?), but I took a deep breath and moved my rubbery feet as quickly as I could into a surprising little place called Stella’s.

I like their Christmas decorations almost as much as I like their attitude that life is supposed to be fun. They have year round indoor batting cages for all those guys and gals who want to practice their swings and improve their baseball skills! They have a dance studio for those people who are light on their feet and can feel the rhythm. Obviously, that would NOT be necessary for Mother Goose…

They have a great hotdog stand! They have pinball machines in their arcade area! They have a sweet little shop to buy baseball bats, balls, mitts and other supplies.

It’s just so charming I have to share.

The leg lamp.

A gentleman with his large bag of lunch.

Of course, it’s Santa Claus!

And Santa!

And Santa!

Notice the “water lights” on the Christmas tree. The Goose family also decorates with “water lights” every year.

And what hot dog stand would be complete without a full Christmas village?

It’s an unusual place to be sure, but the people at Stella’s were all “little town friendly”. Mother Goose has discovered that The Village of Lyons has a very interesting history, and some mysteries to solve… But that’s a story for another day.

Before you close your eyes tonight, please say a prayer for the kids and families of Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. Ask God to please stop the madness and show us how to care for one another.

Love, Mother Goose

Horror. Again.

Another public massacre…

I would think that the suburbs of Portland would be a pretty safe place to do your Christmas shopping. I would probably not even lock up my car if I was going into that mall to pick up some gifts for my friends. When my phone buzzed with a CNN headline last night, the last thing I expected was news of another shooting.

Words don’t begin to tell the story of the pain and the fear and the senselessness of yet another horrible tragedy inflicted on innocent regular people going about their innocent regular business. The madman can be anywhere. God please protect us from random violence.

My friend, Eric, lives on the other side of Portland. Though sickened and in shock, he and his family are OK.

But our society is not OK.

Eric wrote a gut-wrenching poem and posted it on his blog, Give Our Time. I hope that you’ll pass it on to your own circle — this violence must stop. What are we doing to each other when we just say “OMG another shooting” and then go on looking the other way?

I Guess I’ll Look The Other Way

Posted on December 12, 2012

Dedicated to the victims of yesterday’s mass shooting at the Clackamas Town Center mall in Oregon.
I wish words were enough to make the violence go away.

There are people running, screaming;
They’re scared, bleeding;
It’s not real, surreal;
I guess I’ll look the other way.

The sirens are flashing, beaming;
The police are herding, leading;
It’s just a game, blame;
I guess I’ll look the other way.

They said he had a mask, a task;
They said he wanted to hunt, to kill;
It’s his game, fame;
I guess I’ll look the other way.

Someone’s little girl didn’t go home, her home;
The doctors tried, she died;
It wasn’t her game, shame;
I guess I’ll look the other way.

It’s happened before, many more;
A theater, a school, another school;
It was a student’s game, lame;
I guess I’ll look the other way.

There are people arguing, deceiving;
Their rights come first, misleading;
It’s their game, their musket ball and chain;
I guess I’ll look the other way.

I’m supposed to look only meekly, discretely;
To feel remorse, just briefly;
It’s someone else’s game, not my game;
I guess I’ll look the other way.

But what if I don’t, won’t;
What if I stare, and glare;
It’s not a game, it’s pain;
I can’t look the other way.

Not anymore, no more;
I now stand and dare, care;
It’s my pain, our pain;
I will no longer look the other way.

Should the world look away, the other way;
Then I’ll stand alone this day, today;
It’s not a game; it has a name;
Violence.
And it must go away.

– Eric Winger

The Most Perfect Tree

[Mother Goose is observing Wordless Wednesday…shhhh]

Random Pieces of Goose

Imagine the shock of Mother Goose when she spotted this news headline in her inbox:

Woman Leads Police on Goose Chase, Later Found: River Forest Police Blotter

“An officer on patrol at about 10 a.m. in the 800 block of Thatcher reported seeing a southbound vehicle driving at 43 mph in a 25-mph zone. The officer attempted to stop the vehicle, but the driver drove away and later disobeyed a red light at First Avenue. The officer followed the car in a slow speed pursuit as it disobeyed traffic lights, drove through alleys, a gas station and repeatedly changed direction to avoid arrest. At 10:06 a.m., the chase ended and witnesses were able to identify the driver. Police then began efforts to locate the driver.

At 2 p.m. Nov. 28, police in the 1300 block of North Latrobe in Chicago found the vehicle and a tow truck was ordered to seize it. The owner, Alexis Lambert, 28, of the 1300 block of north Latrobe in Chicago, was identified as the driver in the earlier incident. She was taken to the station, processed and issued six tickets on traffic violations; including fleeing and attempting to elude police and driving while her license was suspended. She was later released on cash bond pending trial.”

http://oakpark.patch.com/articles/woman-leads-police-on-goose-chase-later-found-river-forest-police-blotter?ncid=newsltuspatc00000001

Did she participate in a truly wild goose chase?

At first I laughed at the idea of a slow speed goose chase, but then as I read the article more closely I became increasingly confused. It was a six minute goose chase, witnesses identified the driver, but the police did not apprehend the driver or stop the vehicle. The car and driver were not found and charged until three days later!

This story, though amusing, makes Mother Goose wonder: how did the goose get away so easily when she was driving so slowly. I imagine her rounding those corners into those alleys so cautiously and so carefully — much as I myself might elude the police.

I can see her pulling into the gas station to fill up, but realizing that the cops were closing in on her. She jumps back into her vehicle and slowly pulls back out into traffic, looking both ways twice.

Just a couple more easy turns, she looks in her rear view mirror and sees no squad cars behind her — no flashing lights, no sirens wailing — just peaceful morning traffic.

She heads for home, breathing a deep sigh of relief. Unfortunately, she decides to park right in front of her house. And, of course, you know the rest of the story…

And now another bit of goose for you!

A bit of turkey — part of our Christmas decorations OR stashed by a wise squirrel?

Actually it is a bit of turkey hidden in the prickly bush in the garden of Mother Goose. When the Thanksgiving turkey scraps and carcass seemed no longer palatable, Mother Goose simply disposed of it by dumping it into the family dumpster.

Apparently a wise and frugal squirrel entered into the dumpster, grabbed a small morsel and carefully placed it within the prickles of the shrubbery where nobody else could find it or steal it away. The family dog sniffed it out and immediately informed Mother Goose of the bit of turkey. This is just another way to make use of leftover turkey.

And finally, if you are still with Mother Goose today, I have a special request of my readers.

The twin sailor sons of Mother Goose were not home for Thanksgiving this year. Also, they were not home for their birthday last Saturday. Neither will be they be home for MY birthday. And sadly enough, they will not be home for Christmas. Mother Goose has been dabbing at her tears and babbling about missing her sons so much. Then suddenly an idea popped into the feathery head of this old goose!

Wouldn’t it be heartwarming if we all flooded the mailbox of these brave young men with Christmas cards from around the United States and possibly around the world? Couldn’t we all just add these young sailors to our Christmas card lists and really bring some Christmas cheer to their hearts? Maybe we can’t get them home for Christmas, but we can sure make them smile at the generosity and patriotic appreciation of total strangers, can’t we?

Here is their address:

Erik Stevenson
Adam Stevenson
1316 Ellsworth Blvd.
Malta, NY 12020

And Mother Goose thanks you and God blesses you for spreading the spirit of Christmas wherever you are today!

The Night Goose

We could almost call this The Lost Weekend of the Goose! The fun of the wine tasting party was just the beginning of a wild weekend for the Gooses — the good times just keep rolling on and on!

Yesterday was a glorious 63 degree day in our fair town — Mr. Goose found it appropriate to get his golf bag out one more time and enjoyed time chasing the little white ball around the course with his friends.

Of course, Mother Goose deemed it much more to her satisfaction to apply her “mystery shopper” skills to an afternoon in the city — I successfully spied on many grocery store employees, coercing them with many prompts for product knowledge, samplings and escort services within the store. I am still amazed and grateful that they pay me to do this!

After going our separate ways for the day, we regathered in the Goose home and prepared for the next big adventure — dancing the night away with friends, Michael and Amy.

When Michael informed us that we’d meet at Venuti’s Vlounge at 10:00, we had some reasonable doubts about our ability to meet this social obligation. The bedtime of Mother Goose hovers around 9:30 any given night of the week! However, I love a good challenge and was feeling spunky. Mr. Goose was not feeling quite as energized as Mother Goose, but after a long soak in his whirlpool tub with the extreme jets pounding into his aching muscles, he recovered nicely and put on his dancing shoes.

Away we went!

Mother Goose assumed that we would be dancing to the music of Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett and maybe some swing tunes. After all, this is a place called Venuti’s, obviously Italian, obviously suburban, obviously a place for an older crowd (late middle-age…) to gently kick up their heels and waltz gracefully around the dance floor.

Classic Italian architecture, so festive for the holidays!

In other words, we were not prepared for the DJ mix at the Vlounge or the flashing disco lights or the steady pounding and pulsing beat of this modern dance club.

But we had a great time nonetheless! One thing about Mother Goose, she can easily adapt when her expectations are skewed by her reality. I tasted a nice glass of pinot grigio and shouted some nice conversation with Amy and Michael.

Amy and Michael

Showing off their modern moves…

As soon as I heard the remix of Prince’s “When Doves Cry”, I dropped my glass and went charging out on the dance floor. (Prince sounded good thirty years ago, and no matter how you remix him today, he still gets my heart pumping and my knobby knees thumping.) In my zeal, I knocked over a couple of thirty-something women. They were tossing their bleach blonde coiffure and showing off their shapely young legs and moving with all the latest gyrations.

“Look out!” Mother Goose honked at them and stepped over them. “It’s my favorite song!”

Mr. Goose and I stayed on the dance floor until Prince was finished with his song, and then the music morphed into some other heavy beat but we didn’t even notice because we were lost in the magic of the moment. Smiling happily and moving somewhat in time to the music, we each went into our own private worlds of old school dancing. There’s a time for dialogue in a night out, and then there’s a time for just being cool and showing off. Mother Goose tossed back her head, threw her wings in the air and acted out all of her nightclub fantasies there on the dance floor.

Of course, the dance floor immediately cleared out, giving Mother Goose more room for her private dance show.

I remember applause. I remember seeing stars. I remember thinking that maybe I was the star of Dancing With The Stars.

I remember Mr. Goose quietly leading me back to the table whilst the other dancers applauded and cheered. We said our goodbyes to Amy and Michael, and I waved happily and smiled for the cameras of the paparazzi as we left the Venuti Vlounge.

You may know me as Mother Goose, but some call me The Night Goose…

Mother Goose barely broke a sweat in all of her dancing exertions…

Tasting Wine with Mother Goose

Many of my more abstaining readers may be shocked to learn that Mother Goose enjoys a glass of wine now and then! Indeed, I do find great joy in the occasional sip — just to dip my beak into a half-filled crystal goblet brings a smile to the feathery face of this old goose. Of course, I imbibe for medicinal purposes only, you understand. As the great apostle of old advised his young friend Timothy, “Stop drinking only water, and use a little wine because of your stomach and your frequent illnesses.” (1st Timothy 5:23)

Recognizing my ever-present health concerns, my dear friend, Jane, invited me to her first annual wine tasting party.

Mind you, this was no run o’ the mill drinking party, but a well-organized and well-attended event. Several of Jane’s most intellectual and well-heeled friends were invited to learn more about wine and to taste some very exquisite varietals around the fireplace of Jane’s new home. There was gaiety and spontaneous laughter and much making of merriness as befitting the holiday season.

Jane had brought in a wine expert for this occasion — a young man by the name of Chuck Keller, and he is an actual wine advisor with a unique company called Wines for Humanity. He travels to your home with his case of fine wines. A portion of the profits of wine sales for the evening are funneled into a worthy cause such as support of shelters for homeless families with children, or aid to the wounded warriors in our country.

Chuck poured a bit of wine into each of our glasses and began educating us about the fine art of wine tasting. Our first sample for the evening was a light-bodied Italian white wine. He patiently explained to us how to examine the color of the wine by holding our glass up to the light.

After we ooooh’d and ahhhh’d about the lovely color, Chuck demonstrated how to tip our glasses at nearly a 180 degree angle so as to judge the “legs” of the wine. Mother Goose was somewhat confused at this idea, but apparently we were to watch for how the golden liquid clung to the inside of our goblet as we tilted it back upright.

This was all quite odd to Mother Goose — I had to pause and reflect how the legs of a wine might influence my drinking of the wine… In the end, it didn’t matter to much to me personally, as all the wines we tasted and retasted were all quite excellent to my palate regardless of the thickness or length of their legs.

When we had ogled the legs of the wine for long enough, our wine advisor showed us the proper method for swirling the wine in our glasses so as to release the bouquet of the grapes. This is not as easy as it appears. You must set your glass on a flat surface and then briskly rub the bottom of the goblet around and around in a vicious circle. Then immediately bring the glass up to your nose and using both nostrils, sniff deeply the aromas of the wine.

This was truly glorious to Mother Goose who had never experienced the rush of wine odors before this particular evening. It is in the swirling of the wine that the very complex smells are mixed with air and then sent wildly into your olfactories. We could identify hints of vanilla, tobacco, berries, pears, cranberries, violets, earthiness in the red wines, and even grapes in the bouquets of these various wines.

At this point in the tasting, our lovely and amusing hostess had an interesting question: “Chuck, are these smells and flavors built into the grapes or do they add natural flavorings to make it taste so good?” I was glad that she asked this question because Mother Goose has also wondered at times how these wines made from grapes can taste and smell so differently. Perhaps you have also wondered that same question… Our wine advisor patiently advised us all that these wines have no added ingredients except yeast to hasten the process of fermentation.

And then at last when Mother Goose was becoming so thirsty and her throat so parched that she thought she might faint, we were encouraged to drink our wine. And oh the joy that filled my heart!

And on and on it went throughout the evening. Starting with the Italian white, moving to a New Zealand Savignon Blanc, over to France for a country red, back to Italy for a deeper red, to Argentina for a Malbec and at last we finished with a Golden Cream Tango served in a tiny chocolate cup. We sipped, we tasted, we nibbled on all the tasty foods at the table — cheese, crackers, shrimps, olives, sushi and even some sweet and sour meatballs.

We learned so much about wine and wine-making and wine-growing regions of the world. We learned history and geography and language. We learned some chemistry, and we learned social graces. We learned about sulfites and the difference between twist-on caps vs. natural corks vs. unnatural corks. We learned about wine pairings which is simply discovering which wines compliment which foods. In fact, Mother Goose even heard Chuck say that wine is perhaps a wonderful condiment for the foods we eat, and I liked hearing that!

But, of course, I only drink a bit of wine for the health of my stomach, you understand…

And it was all really fun for Mother Goose. In fact, the evening just got more and more fun by the minute. My stomach never felt better!

Dear reader, I hope that you will find yourself in the presence of some discerning wine tasters this holiday season. Do not be intimidated by the complexity of the wine you sample, but only let your heart soar to new places as you sample wines from around the world. Let your love take flight on the wings of a dove as you enjoy time with your family and friends and the fine fruit of the vine.

And thank you, dear Jane, for including me in your intimate gathering of sippers and tasters. I’m sorry this picture of you is so blurry — I guess that means that your wine tasting party was a wonderful success!

Jane and Allen might have tasted even more wine than Mother Goose…for their health, of course!