Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Nothing Like Music to Get You in the Christmas Spirit
Holly heard on the radio yesterday that the Duke Chorale would be doing a Christmas concert at the Duke Chapel last evening. In lieu of an admission price, they were asking the public to bring a non-perishable item for the needy. So we attended with about a thousand other people. I have been to that chapel many times over the years,and it never underwhelms. I used to attend church service there when I was an undergraduate and saw the Messiah performance a few times (though it's very long, it affords an excellent opportunity to write one's Christmas cards). The concert last night did not disappoint. They played the carillion bells starting at 6:30pm, and the concert began at 7pm. All of the lights were turned out to allow the chorale to parade into the dark chapel with small candles. Very stunning. The harmonies were terrific, especially as they filed into the dark vestry at the beginning of the service. They would sing a few songs and then included one for audience participation, done standing ( I am sure to relieve us from the hard church pews every so often). The music was terrific what with the powerful pipe organ and the acoustics in the chapel itself. I feel like I've had my Christmas eve service complete with carol singing. And we got to donate a little something for the Urban Ministries of Durham too. What a win-win.
To my great surprise, Holly came home at lunchtime yesterday, and we went for a hike in the Little River Regional Park by our house. Shelly, our housecleaner, told us about the park because they are holding a trail race there in January. I had hiked some of the trails with Billie the w-e she came to visit, but Holly had never been there. It was very nice-such a gem close to Hillsborough. On the way back, we stopped at Multiflora greenhouses (they had gobs and gobs of poinsettias) and bought a wreath for the house from a local Christmas tree farmer. Holly turned that into a welcoming addition to our front door with the help of a colorful red bow.
My supervisor and I are making arrangements for my return to work in January. Our clinic is starting to incorporate an electronic medical record, and my return will coincide with the start of that. Fortunately, I won't miss much of the training and I'll be back at work in time to join in with the other providers who will be using it during patient visits for the first time. I am nervous about returning to work-worried about finding my groove again after 7 months off. Per my doctor's recommendation, I am starting part-time to regain my stamina for seeing patients all day. You'd think I was starting a new job with the anxieties I've had about it, but I just want to do a good job after all of this time. I have to shake out the cobwebs and concentrate on how everything works again. I've been going over my spanish too since I haven't used that much in the last 6 months.
Also, I am desperately hoping that my anemia is better by then. Right now my hemoglobin is only 8. My usual level is 13. Though I have acclimated to the low levels especially with regards to my exercise, I still think I get more tired than I should. A few extra red blood cells would be really appreciated. Maybe I'll ask Santa for that.
Today's photo: Our Christmas tree at the Hillsborough house and one of the Multiflora greenhouses with their poinsettias (sorry for the poor light control-I still haven't taken that photo 101 class from Susan).
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