To be in Mexico in winter!

I was looking at my pictures today, and found the ones I took while in southern Mexico in 2006. The picture above is Tulum, which is my favorite of all the places we visited. It is on a cliff overlooking the sea. There is a long coral reef running parallel to the coast, and there is only a narrow passageway for boats to come into Tulum. It is one of the most beautiful places I've ever been, and I wanted to share it with anyone who happens to read this.

In the eye of the beholder, many things look different. I can visualize the city as it was, even though right now it's a ruin. The natives moved the town about 10 miles inland, probably after being hammered with too many hurricanes. Being of a practical nature, the people just picked up and moved to a safer place. I imagine that the cliffside Tulum has seen more hurricanes than most places, but many of the buildings are still standing. The new Tulum is not made of stone, and is a hardscrabble area, but the people are very friendly and helpful. It doesn't have the beauty of the original, but it has survived! Sometimes that is the success story, isn't it? We don't usually leave this world at our most beautiful outward appearance, but hopefully our interior is refined, tempered by the storms we've weathered, and the beauty of our souls can shine without being encumbered by outer trappings.

Mom Farr had another fall today. Fortunately she has found a way to fall so gently that she doesn't break anything. She fell right before Christmas, and really gave us a scare. she hadn't put her call button on yet after a shower, the phone was out of reach, and she'd had a stomach flu for several days. She tried to move from wheelchair to recliner, and just slipped out of the chair to the floor and couldn't get up. She lay there for an hour and a half before someone came in to her room and found her. Thankfully she didn't break any bones, just a few bruises. That's what happened today, except she had the call button on and got help right away. I went over as soon as they called. Her knees just don't always support her, but she's determined to keep moving as much as she can, so at least there is someone available that can pick her up.

We had rain last night! Hopefully more is on the way this weekend, too. I watched a cardinal take a bath yesterday, he jumped into the birdbath and had the water just a flyin'! I got a couple pictures, but I don't know if I got enough zoom the really see him. He was so bright red against the icy morning, and oblivious to the cold. I'm running around with 2-3 layers of clothes on, and he's out there in 38 degree weather, taking a bath!