On our way home this evening, the song “White Christmas” came on the radio. Aub and Cooter were in the car with me, as I was humming along without really thinking about the song. The song continued, and the lyrics played:
“I’m dreaming of a white Christmas
with every Christmas card I write
May your days be merry…..”
and then I heard Cooter hollering at the top of his lungs from the very back seat–
“WHAT?” Palm to forehead. “What? I’m supposed to write Christmas cards too?”
*sigh*
Poor little guy.
Poor all of us.
How many folks have asked you, “Are you ready for Christmas?” “Do you have it all done?” “Have you planned your menu for the day?”
How many times have you asked those questions in an effort to make conversation?
*guilty*
All the pressure. All the expectations. We create list after list. Shopping lists. Gifts we’re giving lists. Parties and dinners we are invited to. Parties and dinners we want to throw. A baking list. A grocery list. A list of errands. And yes, Cooter, even a Christmas card list.
One of my sweet friends was all but apologizing to me today that her Christmas card wasn’t going out until after Christmas. There was just too much to do and not enough time.
Bless. Her. Sweet. Soul.
I remember the year I didn’t send out cards until Valentine’s. It worked. It was kind of fun. And I’m guessing our card didn’t get lost in a stack with everyone else’s Valentine’s Day cards. Just a thought.
We put a lot of pressure on ourselves–scratch that. I put a lot of pressure on myself to create the perfect Christmas full of all the perfect little moments in a clean, tidy home with lots of festive decorations and ornamentation and all of the joy and fun and laughter and contented sighs.
Yeah.
I’m betting I’m not the only one.
We have one week left, y’all. To take it back. To take a moment to rest and cuddle and read a Christmas story together piled up on the couch or chair or bed underneath the colorful afghans that bring me such joy with the people that make my soul glad. Savoring the moment without worrying over the perpetual clutter or unwrapped gifts and all the other things we carry on our shoulders. To simply be in the precious moment of NOW.
We have one week left to change our question from “Are you ready?” to “How are you?” or “Where are you finding peace and Light today?” or “Where AM I going to find peace and Light today?”
We have one week left to change it. Even if we only take five minutes a day to step away from all the expectations and Hallmark commercials (doggone them for making me cry and wanting to create all the moments myself) and hustle and bustle and lists and pressure, and we just sit down and breathe. And laugh. Or listen. Or sit next to the people we love or the people we’ve just met and BE. That’s the goal. If we can even take five minutes a day to welcome into our hearts the presence of Peace, we’ve come a long way from all of the things weighing on us, all of the lists we carry around, and we’re one step closer to that quiet night of reflection and Love beneath a bright star listening to the quiet, steady breaths of the little one newly come to us.
Go ahead. Add THAT to your list. You deserve it. And *takes a deep breath* so do I.
Love to all.
I Might Need A Nap 