Sick but Lucky

We are dragging here in Colorado. We both got an awful cold just before Christmas. It was so intensely bad that we didn't think that anyone should be near us (especially not senior citizen relatives) so we spent the holiday weekend on our own - sleeping, snoozing, sneezing, coughing, and watching silly movies.

As some of you know, I adore the morning light around the Winter Solstice in our neck of the woods. Prior to getting sick, I'd had days and days of gray mornings, with no sunrise light although I was out there every morning looking for it. Then, after the sneezes and coughs hit, the clouds cleared out. So, I didn't accomplish much this weekend except for getting out to see the sunrise with Shyla.

I love seeing her chocolate fur turn red in the rosy first sun rays of the morning.

She seems to remember our winter solstice routine from one year to the next. This girl is such a wonderful friend! I cannot believe how close our bond has become.

I took the next one just as the whole sun cleared the eastern hills. The light is almost blindingly red.

Literally, just minutes after sunrise, the sun ray color starts to return to normal.

It's not something that I am willing to miss, no matter what. It lasts only for a few minutes each morning and for a few weeks out of each year. So, sick or not, I was going to be out there with Shyla.

Now, we're both tired of being sick. We're hoping to be well enough to reschedule our Christmas plans for next weekend. We feel lucky to have each other, our wonderful (and mostly healthy!) Labraduo, and our warm house in the mountains. Even if we're sick for Christmas, we're lucky, and we know it.