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“I guarantee you, when you are 25 you’ll be looking back on this and saying, “what was I thinking?’”
Or…. The poor high school student, whose mother was off pouting about something she had said hours ago and whose father had been haranguing her for the entire hour we were in line to see Santa, might be surrounded by her four close friends, preparing for Christmas in her own little apartment, thinking, ‘Wow! I never knew Christmas could feel like this.’ I have noticed that Christmas is a time when adults turn to children again. Sometimes this is a good thing, like when we are excited by the decorations or lick the spoon from the fudge (something I did last night. :>) But sometimes it is a regression into behaviors more suited to a six year old, like fixating on an ideal of what we wanted to happen, rather than enjoying the moment we are actually living. As each silent tear fell from this young adult’s eyes I prayed that Santa would be able to bring some Christmas cheer back into her life. I wished that she could have her own, personal moment with Santa, like the sacrament of reconciliation at my Catholic church, to know that even in the dark moments of her life when she feels most alone and hopeless, she is loved and cherished. I’m not sure what ended up happening. The family followed us in, still frowning and angry at one another, the daughter still with bright eyes. But I was busy, enraptured in the moment of joy between my daughter and Santa, solid in my knowledge that someday, 25 years from now or longer, we would all have our own, private and lovely, memory of this visit to Santa. What are your favorite memories of Christmas? Was it a time of peace or strife in your family? I love to hear from my readers, so leave me a comment. All comments entered onto any of my blogs during the month of December will enter you in a drawing to win $10 to the non-political charity of your choice. Check back at the end of the month to see if you won. Happy Holidays! Deanne
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“Mom, I’m going to be late for school. Why didn’t you wake me?”
5:30 a.m. this morning – I wake up and read my email: ‘two hour weather delay’ awaits me. I gulp, think of my schedule for the day, and then sigh. Outside there is no snow, but at the sun begins to rise I see the white, sparkly frost which has settled on the trees and bushes like powdered sugar. The net which surrounds our trampoline is an opaque ghost. I sip my coffee and wrap a blanket around myself, cuddled up though the outside temp is near 20 degrees. It seems fitting that this weather delay happens two weeks before Christmas. Would that I could freeze time as easily as Mother Nature has frozen the earth. Indeed, the gift of time is something I remember having received as a surprise Christmas gift a few years ago. A rare snow storm shut down the town and we were all stuck. With all of our children in elementary school, our neighborhood was close knit back then. We sipped cider spiked with Tuaca while the kids built snow forts and snowmen. One of us would trudge the half mile to the grocery store, backpack on back, sled pulled behind them with bells attached. Like an old sleigh, the jingling sound would follow them as they filled our orders for green beans, eggs, and more cider. There was no place to be…. No place we could be. In this moment, in this time, we slowed and the normal Christmas chaos disappeared in the gift of time. It was the best gift I ever received for Christmas, the one I still cherish. I pray your holidays are filled with these magical moments of time… or that in the stillness of the morning your own school delays take on the spirit of a gift. Deanne Have you had school delays this year? How is the weather where you live? What Holiday stories do you have to tell? I love, love, love hearing from friends and fans. So leave a comment during the month of December and at the end of the month one commenter will win a $10 donation to the non-political charity of their choice. Check back at the end of the month to see if you won. |
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Deanne WilstedLink here to Betting Jessica on Amazon.com Archives
June 2020
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