I HAD COME DOWN THE CHIMNEY
WITH PRESENTS TO GIVE,
AND TO SEE JUST WHO
IN THIS HOME DID LIVE.

I LOOKED ALL ABOUT,
A STRANGE SIGHT I DID SEE,
NO TINSEL, NO PRESENTS,
NOT EVEN A TREE.

NO STOCKING BY MANTLE,
JUST BOOTS FILLED WITH SAND,
ON THE WALL HUNG PICTURES
OF FAR DISTANT LANDS.

WITH MEDALS AND BADGES,
AWARDS OF ALL KINDS,
A SOBER THOUGHT
CAME THROUGH MY MIND.

FOR THIS HOUSE WAS DIFFERENT,
IT WAS DARK AND DREARY,
I FOUND THE HOME OF A SOLDIER,
ONCE I COULD SEE CLEARLY.

THE SOLDIER LAY SLEEPING,
SILENT, ALONE,
CURLED UP ON THE FLOOR
IN THIS ONE BEDROOM HOME.

THE FACE WAS SO GENTLE,
THE ROOM IN SUCH DISORDER,
NOT HOW I PICTURED
A UNITED STATES SOLDIER.

WAS THIS THE HERO
OF WHOM I’D JUST READ?
CURLED UP ON A PONCHO,
THE FLOOR FOR A BED?

I REALIZED THE FAMILIES
THAT I SAW THIS NIGHT,
OWED THEIR LIVES TO THESE SOLDIERS
WHO WERE WILLING TO FIGHT.

SOON ROUND THE WORLD,
THE CHILDREN WOULD PLAY,
AND GROWNUPS WOULD CELEBRATE
A BRIGHT CHRISTMAS DAY.

THEY ALL ENJOYED FREEDOM
EACH MONTH OF THE YEAR,
BECAUSE OF THE SOLDIERS,
LIKE THE ONE LYING HERE.

I COULDN’T HELP WONDER
HOW MANY LAY ALONE,
ON A COLD CHRISTMAS EVE
IN A LAND FAR FROM HOME.

THE VERY THOUGHT
BROUGHT A TEAR TO MY EYE,
I DROPPED TO MY KNEES
AND STARTED TO CRY.

THE SOLDIER AWAKENED
AND I HEARD A ROUGH VOICE,
‘SANTA DON’T CRY,
THIS LIFE IS MY CHOICE;

I FIGHT FOR FREEDOM,
I DON’T ASK FOR MORE,
MY LIFE IS MY GOD,
MY! COUNTRY, MY CORPS.’

THE SOLDIER ROLLED OVER
AND DRIFTED TO SLEEP,
I COULDN’T CONTROL IT,
I CONTINUED TO WEEP.

I WEPT FOR HOURS,
SO SILENT AND STILL
AND WE BOTH SHIVERED
FROM THE COLD NIGHT’S CHILL.

I DIDN’T WANT TO LEAVE
ON THAT COLD, DARK, NIGHT,
THIS GUARDIAN OF HONOR
SO WILLING TO FIGHT.

THEN THE SOLDIER ROLLED OVER,
WITH A VOICE SOFT AND PURE,
WHISPERED, ‘CARRY ON SANTA,
IT’S CHRISTMAS DAY, ALL IS SECURE.’

ONE LOOK AT MY WATCH,
AND I KNEW HE WAS RIGHT.
‘MERRY CHRISTMAS MY FRIEND,!
AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT.’

This poem was written by a Marine.

Latest addition to the herd....Longhorn Calf

Another beautiful addition to our herd here at the ranch is our latest new born Longhorn bull calf! He is striking in his patterned coat that Longhorns are noted for and the guests love watching him romp and play over the hills as they enjoy their drinks on the porches.

The ponds froze up this year during the big freeze of January 2010!  We haven’t seen this in  years.  The gardens took the brute force of the below freezing temperatures that lasted for several days, looking worse for wear (even though we covered and clamped down and lit up with lights to help keep them warm!).  Those that have not survived the big chill will be replaced with a new and different specimen.  This is  our opportunity to  venture out with something new and experiment.  The freeze is a definite bonus for us with bugs in that it depletes the numbers and knocks them back to a more manageable level for  us.  When the ranch goes years without a major freeze, it allows the bugs to multiply and winter over creating more work for us with each succeeding year!….especially for those of us who are mostly organic gardeners!  Looking forward to Spring, the wildflowers at the B&B and excited to see what comes back in  our gardens!

Saturday, the 21st at Lake Somerville, he and his group birded Overlook Park, Welch Park, and Yegua Creek Park.
Highlights were two Buffleheads in with a group of American Coots, a Red-breasted Merganser that we saw in flight and diving, a group of Wilson’s Snipe, and 3 Sprague’s Pipits flushed up in a short-grass field.  The entire bird list of sightings included:
Bufflehead- 2
Red-breasted Merganser- 1
Ruddy Duck- 22
Snow Goose- several skeins, plus two on the ground
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
American White Pelican
Double-crested Cormorant
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
American Kestrel
American Coot
Killdeer
American Avocet- 3
Spotted Sandpiper
Least Sandpiper
Wilson’s Snipe- 9
Bonaparte’s Gull
Ring-billed Gull
Forster’s Tern
Mourning Dove
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Phoebe
Blue Jay
American Crow
Carolina Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Carolina Wren
House Wren
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher- 1
Eastern Bluebird
Hermit Thrush
Northern Mockingbird
American Pipit
Sprague’s Pipit- 5
Orange-crowned Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Chipping Sparrow
Field Sparrow
Vesper Sparrow
Savannah Sparrow
Song Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Western Meadowlark
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
American Goldfinch