Things I Miss

I'm feeling nostalgic tonight and somewhat melancholy. Christmas is fast approaching and with all there is still to be done it feels somehow wrong. I'm remembering how we used to get ready for this holiday and without those things, somehow, this year feels kind of empty. Here are some of the things I miss.

*Writing a letter to Santa. Writing that letter as a child was like putting all my wishes in one place and sending them out into the universe with the hope that one day they'd all come true.  Maybe as an adult I should still do that--hey, it couldn't hurt, right?

*Looking through the Sears toy catalog. Was there anything better than that? We used to wait for it to come out and then spend hours looking through it and marking off the things we wanted. I wish there were a catalog like that now! Just to dream about whatever strikes your fancy would be such a pleasant way to spend an afternoon.

*Doing Christmas crafts. Whether it was making tree decorations out of yarn and cardboard or making tinfoil chains I loved Christmas crafts. Busy hands making what became treasured items when they survived time's ravages in retrospect was an awesome way to fill the time waiting for the big day.

*Walking uptown to do Christmas shopping. It was wonderful growing up in a small town where I could walk uptown with a friend after school to shop. The Internet and the big box stores and the mall just aren't the same. It was so much fun walking in the crisp December air and looking at everything in the shops on Spring Stree while humming along to the Christmas carols being broadcast over the stores' sound system. Such dazzling displays of items and decorations! It wa a great way to get into the holiday spirit!

These are some of the ornaments I made

When I was younger. The top two when I was perhaps 12, and the bottom one as a newlywed. I treasure them and put them on our tree every year.

Spots & Stains

Yesterday as I was cleaning and cooking in preparation for Thanksgiving I noticed how used and worn my house and appliances are; especially in the kitchen.  We've lived here nearly thirty years and of course replaced things from time to time but not for quite a few years. (Thank goodness because things are so expensive!) the linoleum is looking a little tired with a scratch or a crack in a couple spots and some staining which I think just can't be helped because of its age and amount of use. The kitchen really is the most used room in the house, the place where everyone goes for warmth, comfort, sustenance and me. Many conversations happen in the kitchen, usually in front of the stove.  My stovetop, I'm afraid, is showing its age. There are stains around the burners that just won't come off no matter how hard I scrub. I was thinking as I was cooking and cleaning that all the wear and tear are silent witness to the life we have here. There's the scratch in the floor just under the front of the fridge that happened when a jar of pickles fell and broke leaving a chunk of glass which left its damage when we moved the icebox to clean the pickley mess. The high traffick areas just never seem to look as clean as the rest of the floor even though I mop them regularly, testament to the number of times feet make contact there. The stovetop especially tells the story of family and friends being fed and cared for. Whether it's a box of macaroni and cheese, a cup of tea or a Thanksgiving feast that left a small spatter or stain there's a certain comfort I take in knowing I've loved and helped sustain the important people in my life in such a basic, beautiful way. So this Thanksgiving I give thanks for the spots and stains that are a testament to our family's love for one another.  Happy Thanksgiving!

Remember November

The ghosts and goblins have come and gone

A new month starts with the dawn

This is the month we most give thanks

For veterans, voting, and (fill in the blanks),

Please don't rush through this month November,

Take your time so you can remember,

Everyone you are most thankful for,

Feeling thankful for them is not a chore.

by S. Donald

Welcome to November, the most rushed through without acknowledging it month. It seems we go directly from Halloween to Christmas in a rushed haze barely sparing a thought for any of this month's events. Election Day, Veterans Day, and Thanksgiving are all pretty important days but seem to be an afterthought.  How hard our ancestors fought for the right to vote, and some people in other areas of the world still don't have that right. Yet how many of us simply blow it off because either it's not an "important" election such as for president or because we don't like any of the candidates. Well I'd say every election is important because it gives each of us a chance to send a message. Even if the candidate we chose doesn't win, someone notices that x number of people don't agree with the person who won. Doesn't that help (at least in theory) send a message that there is important work to do in bringing all points of view into play? That may be too simplistic for some people's taste but hey, I'm just expressing my opinion which I have every right to do largely because of the people we honor on Veterans Day. Those brave men and women who gave service to our country so that we might all be able to sit around reading blogs where others share their thoughts on any subject they like from the comfort of our cozy homes. That's a pretty important day! Then there is Thanksgiving which has been diluted to be an excuse to over eat, over drink, watch football and plan Christmas shopping strategy. I hope we all pause in our indulging to be thankful for all that we have, material things and food but also our friends and family. The people who help make our lives as rich and full as they are. This is another important day!  So we have 30 days to try and keep a slower pace and bear in mind all we have to be thankful for. Let's not let the month go by in a blur, but live it one day at a time savoring the feeling each event brings.

Reading

I love to read, always have and always will. I love a good story! As a child I spent many hot summer days either in the coolness of the library reading & picking out books or laying on a towel in the yard reading. I especially enjoyed all of Louisa  May Alcott's books and Laura Ingalls Wilder's reading them over and over so many times I lost count. I loved books about horses reading "Black Beauty" and "Misty of Chincoteague" multiple times. These days I'm more likely to read either a murder/mystery or a novel although I take occasional forays into life after death. Those collections of inspirational stories such as "Chicken Soup for the Soul" can also be found on my book shelves. I've just always loved books; and words. I love alliteration and rhymes yet rarely do I read poetry. I prefer to write my own although scraps of Robert Frost's "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" occasionally run through my mind, and I can still recite "Trees" by Joyce Kilmer.  Books; stories; have a way of taking me out of my routine life and giving my worries a rest. Reading at the park is an especially good routine buster for me. Of course on a cold winter weekend afternoon there's not much that beart curling up with a blanket and a good book.  There are those who prefer non fiction or a biography, and while those can be interesting I prefer to leave reality behind and go along with an author's imagination. Whatever you like to read, give yourself a little vacation and open up a book. You're bound to feel refreshed and have a slightly new perspective on things.

Little Things

Sometimes the things going on in my life, both good and bad, come at me so rapidly that I begin to feel overwhelmed and pointless. So many things going on and no time to process it all or deal with anything effectively. This past week has been filled with good things and some not so good. No major bad things, really just annoying difficulties that arise time to time in everyone's life but when I'm feeling ineffective and emotionally drained those minor things feel huge and insurmountable. When that happens it seems like I am always the recipient of some type of nice little surprise from a friend on the day I need it the most. It could be anything from a phone call to a box of cookies in the mail. Yesterday I was feeling like I was the most pointless, ineffective person ever to walk this earth. As I approached my front door upon returning home from work, planning in my head a little pity party over lunch, I saw something on the chair on the porch. It was a stack of small books tied with a ribbon and a note attached. It was from a friend who shares a love of those little books with me. My day suddenly was wonderful! The books vary from bible verses to bless the home, pictures of Washington, DC, to Chinese Proverbs. My favorite among the books is a beautiful one about friendship, which was in the middle of the stack.  It was such a nice surprise to find that gift by the front door. The seemingly smallest acts of kindness we do for our friends can make the biggest difference in how we feel and see ourselves. Sometimes even the most optimistic among us needs that little boost that says "you are important, you are wonderful, you are appreciated just because you are you". If you are thinking of doing something for someone just because you want to then I urge you to do it--write a note, bake some cookies, drop off a candy bar or pick up the phone and call. It may seem a small thing to you, but it could be just what someone needs to regroup and get on with this business of living.