[clay]

hey Ruthie:
I hear you on the holidays...being lean..and all...this will be a truly lean one, for me..and this is the third year since my wife passed away..I don't even celebrate them....I still miss her...like it happened yesterday...BUT I know she wouldn't want me to grieve, but to forge ahead and enjoy life...still, it is so very hard. The ladies ,for the most part, seem to be so hardened, so jaded, and so broken, at this age that they are so afraid to love again...but I am ever positive and hopeful she does exist, and we will find one another when it is meant to be...meanwhile, I flirt, I play, and I believe....so....keep the faith..it isn't about what we can spend, it is about how we treat our fellow beings...peace on earth..peace in our heart..and love for one another..THAT is the spirit of the holidays...