The last few days of 2025 have kind of been like all the Mississippi seasons wrapped up together. We had spring, summer, fall and winter in a matter of days. It was almost the hottest Christmas day ever, but by dark it was cooling back down enough that the guests at our dinner party moved back inside from the outside bar. Even the holiday mosquitos have been out and about. I’m not sure if they are celebrating Christmas or the New Year. Perhaps both.
Yes, I would say that with the exception of a tornado or two, or maybe the occasional hurricane, we had a little bit of it all in the week in between.
At this writing on Sunday — early deadline second week in a row...yuck — we were babysitting our daughter’s dog, Lady, and she was throughly enjoying a game of “throw the tennis ball over, and over, and over again.” The weather was pleasant, but at some point, according to the weather prognosticators, it was to come a little rain and be in the 20s by Tuesday morning. Time to drip the water again, I suppose.
Alexa, the lady in the box on the living room shelf that controls the thermostat, has begun rolling her eyes at me — if she has eyes — and getting a little huffy, when I say Alexa, turn the thermostat up, Alexa turn the thermostat down, Alexa turn the heat on, Alexa turn the A/C on, over, and over, and over again, much like “throw the tennis ball.”
I put on some sweatpants and I got hot. I put on some shorts and I got cold...over, and over, and over again.
We are heading to a friend’s house in Maben for a small New Year’s Eve gathering and I guess we’ll have to pack winter clothes, summer clothes and perhaps spring and fall too, just to cover all the bases.
It will be interesting to see what the year 2026 holds for us. I’ll turn 65 in 25 days and my Medicare card, I understand, is in the mail. A bonafide senior citizen. Doggonit, I’m not sure I’m ready for that.
I would much rather be turning 25 in 25 days or 35, or 45, or even 55 I think. Sometimes I feel like I have aged more in the last 10 years than I did in the first 55. Maybe it is just because they seem to have gone by so darn fast with the aging process.
I have said it over and over again in this space. The old folks, before we became the old folks, always warned that time will slip away from us in the blink of an eye. They were certainly correct.
It is hard to determine when it was that the crazy process began to rear its ugly head. There are still 365 days in a year and every one of those days still has the same 24 hours of daylight and dark in it. That being true, how in the world did November become December and in another single day January 2026 will be here.
Questions, questions, questions!
Will I be here in another 10 years. Will I be here when it is time to say I’ll be 75 in 25 days? Will any of us be here then? At this point in life, the downhill side of living I suppose one could say, we have to wonder will I be here when it is time to say I’ll be 85 in 25 days? That is not that far away any more! Perhaps the bigger question is will I even want to be here when I’ll be 85 in 25 days, or worse yet, will I even know I’m here when I’ll be 85 in 25 days.
One thing for sure, there is no way to know the answer, so why worry about it. Geez, it is time to get off the philosophy box.
I think I’ll just enjoy these last few days of 2025, look to a promising future in 2026, and take whatever comes my way minute by minute, day by day, week by week, month by month, and year by year.
I’ll be thankful for what we have, try to spend more quality time with family and friends, and even go play “throw the ball over, and over, and over, again” with sweet Lady dog.
Matter of a fact, I believe it is time to get off this computer and head out to the backyard, where wife Danny and the dog are now and get started. Heck, the sun is even peeking through. Actually it is hot!
Right after, that is, I talk to Alexa about the thermostat, take a shower, and put on something suitable for hot and cold, wet and dry, because there is just no way to know what this Mississippi weather will offer in a matter of minutes.
Time is moving fast, you know, enjoy it while you can, and cheers to another new year!
