“A HOLIDAY NOTE”
‘TIS THE SEASON AFTER ALL …
‘Tis the season … to be tired but merry, to search for gifts under a strict deadline, to remember (or fear) the very dear ghosts of Christmas past, to bake and buy less-than-healthy options hoping the scale will be stolen before January, to enjoy a beer called Nutcracker, to make a gingerbread house that will take endless hours, to watch reruns you have memorized, to travel against your better judgment, while hoping to survive the madness and crazy weather, to send out customized photo cards even though the entire tradition seems to be lingering on very thin ice, to dig out old sweaters and wonder why you have never worn them or donated them, to read Dickens one more time and wonder why Scrooge was such a total jerk, to buy more and more gift bags because wrapping presents is an advanced skill you never acquired, to attend obligatory holiday parties when you’d rather be home near the fireplace sipping egg nog, to act jollier and jollier until smiling feels almost normal again, to think about a strained budget more than once, to stand in line for a good thirty minutes to buy postal stamps and ship gifts, to call customer service for lost packages and hope to talk to a real person after a 25-minute wait, to forget at least one person you really wanted to remember over the holidays, to think about ski slopes, winter cabins, and old-fashioned sleigh rides even though there is zero chance you’ll be anywhere near a snowflake, to hum old Christmas carols when you’ve had a stressful day and need some holiday cheer, to take the kids to see Santa one more time because you’re simply caught up in the moment, to participate in whatever religious traditions you hold dear, to watch new holiday movies and wonder why they seem so lame and predictable, to make “no fail fudge” that often fails, to run to the store “one more time” at the very last minute, to buy dog toys and treats that get a so-so reaction, to light those old pine-scented candles that don’t quite live up to your expectations and actually lead to an allergic reaction, to wonder if your values are aligned with your seasonal priorities, to think about a last-minute haircut because of those dreaded holiday zoom calls, to spend way too much time on your phone texting pictures of your solar Christmas lights that only work great when the sun happens to shine, to get caught up in downtown traffic when you’re seriously late for an appointment, to make sweet potatoes because the marshmallows on top are fluffy and white, to watch all the old holiday movies without really watching any of them, to avoid national and political news that seems like a bad cold that won’t go away, to delete endless emails with the next and best promotion, to miss those who were once a big part of your holiday season, to wonder why bickering relatives really do begin to resemble the Christmas Vacation variety, to sort through a very large, disorganized recipe box to find the fruit cake recipe your mother made every year, and finally, to vow that next year … will … be … different. Probably not, but maybe that’s the hidden charm of the season. Maybe that’s why we simply can’t let go. ~
“Holidays”
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow 1807-1882
The holiest of all holidays are those
Kept by ourselves in silence and apart;
The secret anniversaries of the heart,
When the full river of feeling overflows …Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, everyone!
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