This Little Light

For many years there stood warm welcoming yard light in the front yard. As often happens in this part of Florida the iron pipe rusted and I had to take the thing down. I planned to replace it when “I got around to it!”
Now let’s move forward at least twenty or twenty-five years. The wires were still there but, my round to it was not!
I’ll back-up a bit though not as much. Every year we send out over a hundred Christmas cards with a picture of us standing in front of a different lighthouse. We found that to be out of the question this year because of my health, so what could we do?
I decided, in early spring of 2011, that if I could no longer go to a lighthouse I would bring a lighthouse to me! I would build one right here in the yard! That meant that I would have to go from a crazy idea to a finished product that we could stand by for our Christmas card photo by Thanksgiving!
The more I thought about it with my health and our finances, the more it looked like the impossible dream. But, wasn’t I the one that was always telling everyone that if they could dream it, they could do it?
It was then; I started drawing plans for the lighthouse in my head! I included our financial limitations but, I forgot to plan for MY limitations! Twenty or thirty years ago I could dig seven or eight post holes, line up the posts, and mix and pour the cement! I was shocked to find that if I dug two post holes that I had to rest until tomorrow to mix and pour in the cement! I had to learn that each day there was just so much goody in my body and when it was used up, it was GONE! If I pushed harder it made the next day a rest day! And remember, I always had that Thanksgiving date hanging over my head!
I found that my body could only stand for a few minutes! But, I was amazed to find how much I could accomplish while sitting in that old white plastic chair! My health limitations and our financial limitations worked well together, neither leaned to hard on the other.
I only used screws in the construction, that way if my plans in my head were “a little off” all I had to do was back the screws out and do it right the next time.
Location for the lighthouse was easy because I always liked the location of that old yard light. And besides, the old wires still marked the spot!
I learned much from this project. I learned my limitations and I learned the price I had to pay for trying to extend those limitations!
It all started with those plans in my head, those dreams! Then, day by day, week by week, month by month, I could see those dreams turn into reality. It would have never happened if I would have convinced myself that I was too old to start something like that. To old? Gosh I’m only Eighty-six!

This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine! Let it shine! Let it shine!

Merry Christmas