Now it is not there yet…but it has gone over a third of the way toward everyone’s favorite season…winter. Two months left in 2022 and due to the holidays, they go by the fastest. It has been said that opportunity waits for no man. Or…today is the tomorrow that you worried about yesterday. Simply speaking…live in the moment. The lovely fall leaves beckon us to join them…the Pumpkin Spice Coffee is brewing and Thanksgiving plans are underway.

Loneliness and being alone…or feeling alone is difficult all year long but especially at this time of year. When a person who is housebound sees the pageantry and joy of the Holiday Season on their television or remembers happy Thanksgiving or Christmases of days gone by…they feel the burden of different physical rules for them. Many of us are shy or introverted or what we used to call…loners. Loneliness can be as pervasive as any disease. It is damaging to both the spirit and the body.
Fall brings hope for a bright future. The brilliantly colored leaves wave to us as they gently fall to the earth. They seem to be saying…do not fear…I will be back next year…

‘I think that fall is my favorite time of year,’ Neva J. said as she sipped her Pumpkin Spiced Coffee. ‘What does everyone want for Christmas…I am taking orders…here are several copies of the Sears Christmas Wishbook,’ Neva J. announced. ‘Well…I would like a Big Swinger Polaroid Camera, Billy B. said. ‘I want a Daniel Boone Action Figure that looks just like the actor Fess Parker,’ Chet proclaimed. ‘Do you think that Gary S. would like to join us for Christmas Dinner,’ Billy B. asked. ‘I know that he would love to…he lives alone in Parrish Addition and the last time that I visited him he was eating Campbells Pork and Beans for his Breakfast and Lunch and Dinner,’

‘What a feast we have before us…there is Roast Beast and Hasty Pudding and Goose as well,’ Darryl proclaimed. ‘I remember when mama would make divinity candy when I was a lad…it always made me feel loved and warm inside…mama would cut the first piece of divinity for me and place it on my plate and then give me a kiss,’ Gary S. said with a tear in his eye. Neva J. promptly cut the divinity and walked over to Gary S. and kissed him on the top of his head…and gave him the first piece of the Christmas Candy. Gary S. began to reminisce about his days in Mt. Vernon, Illinois, and his job at the factory. He spoke of his wife of 30 years who had passed away a few years ago. They had a son who was killed in Vietnam. Their son…was their life. Gary said that before this Christmas he had been dreading it. He was legally blind and had difficulty walking. Gary S. said that he had planned on purchasing a small turkey for Christmas dinner…but that there were no small ones left…’It is hard buying groceries for one person…and I have little grocery money…’

‘Let us sing some Christmas Carols,’ Jane said with a broad smile. They began to sing Silent Night and each person around the Holiday Table held a candle aloft. The smile on Gary S.’s face lit up the room. He sang with a deep bass voice and the resonant beauty of his voice captivated all who heard the words.

‘Blow out your candles and we will turn on the lights,’ Neva J. said. ‘Where is Gary S.’ Billy B. asked. An empty chair was before their surprised gazes.

‘Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares…’