sy Nine of Cups Holiday Newsletter 2016

2016, our 16th year aboard? Really? It's all gone by in a flash and we sometimes wonder where all the time went. Thank goodness we write blogs, keep journals and take lots of photos, otherwise we'd be sorely challenged to figure out just where we've been and what we've done for nearly two decades.

We'd left Nine of Cups in Trinidad at last year's end and returned to her in the early springtime. After lots of boat work and projects, we began the passage home. Cups had not been in American waters since 2007 and we were looking forward to being back in the USA once again.

We've had lots of adjustments to make now that we're back. I find myself forgetting that we don't have to provision for three months at a time … there are always grocery stores nearby. We have internet and phone service quite regularly and everyone speaks English.

As always, as we near the end of the year, our thoughts turn to the upcoming year and we wonder what adventures and challenges 2017 will hold for us. Plans? Well, we' really haven't made any. Downeast Maine and Maritime Canada seem appealing, but I guess we'll wait to see which way the wind blows and take it from there. Whatever we end up doing, we know it'll be wonderful and we hope you'll continue to sail along with us.

Click here to download a pdf document of our annual Holiday Newsletter and get the rest of the story and the year in review.

A Yuletide Season Celebration

It was -2F (-18C) as I crawled begrudgingly out of our warm bed the other morning and made my way to the bathroom (a very cold seat!) and then to the kitchen for two cups of steaming coffee that I had smelled brewing for the past half hour. Keeping warm is a major occupation these days in Boston and we wonder sometimes if we're up to the task. Too much warm living. After managing a cold day of food shopping, tromping around in slush, shoveling snow and lots of shivering, we prepared to go to Lin's Earth-centered group's annual winter solstice celebration … aka Yule. The best part of celebrating solstice besides the camaraderie, eating and drinking is that solstice signifies the end of shortening days and the beginning of the northern hemisphere's slow return to spring and summer. The days will lengthen again and the warm will eventually return. Hallelujah!

We've attended many Yule celebrations with this group and it's always a pleasant experience despite my griping and grousing about heading out into the dark of night and freezing temps to get there. Milton's First Parish, dating to 1787, is a white-clapboard UU church and always serves as our venue.

The group has gotten smaller over the years, but the core group remains solid and wonderfully welcoming. Pam led us through a simple, but thought-provoking ceremony. We reminisced about the old year and shared plans for the new. We sang carols and made beeswax candles as part of the festivities. And I, thoroughly involved in the ceremonial activities, took no pictures till it was all over. Darn!

We later shared a potluck dinner and exchanged gifts in a traditional Yankee trade. Everyone brought wonderful gifts so there were no white elephants … well, maybe the year-old Truro cranberry wine qualified. But we sampled it when we got home, and lo and behold, it was quite good and will be used as a dessert wine after Christmas dinner. A fun and meaningful evening. Let the longer days commence … soon!

Finding the Holiday Spirit

It's that time of year when spirits should be running high, but sometimes it's kind of hard to get into the seasonal mood. With Rebecca's recent death and lots of other things on our minds, it's been a challenge to make the transition to jolly, but we're trying. Remembering just how much Rebecca loved Christmas and the holiday season makes it a bit easier. Being in New England with Lin and her family has certainly helped. We picked out a Christmas tree the other day and began to decorate Lin's house.

We have a new grand-niece and this will be her very first Christmas … definitely something to celebrate.

I first heard, then saw the local flock of wild turkeys traipse trough Lin's yard. We see them at dawn and dusk and they always bring a smile to my face. Tuesday, Lin's cat, watched them carefully, but wisely opted to keep her distance.

It snowed the other night. Though only an inch or so, it was the first substantial snow of the season and covered the ground, frosting the evergreens, making everything white and clean … at least for awhile.

We had a tree-decorating party with just the family last Sunday, and the spirit of the season seems contagious. The excitement of new parents delighting over their baby daughter's smiles and giggles is “chicken soup for the soul”.

I've done some shopping … the minimal amount possible, but enough to fill the Christmas stockings with fun goodies.

Bring on the holidays … we're almost ready.