One huge sigh of relief (Fat Boy is just fine, so my Christmas wish has come true!) and another of overwhelm...
This photo is from my husband's work party, an annual gala which is held in a hotel ballroom...isn't the decorating fabulous? Not sure whose arm that is in the picture, but the decorations look nearly as pretty as they did in real life. The party was last weekend...a treat to get away for an overnight and let loose a little...on the other hand I feel like I cannot catch up lately, no matter what I do; even one 24-hour period "wasted" on something as frivolous as a party seems to make me feel guilty these days.
For the past few years I have to admit that I've felt well, a bit disenchanted with the holidays. I prepare (love the decorating!); usually starting early so that I can really savor the season...but somehow admist the frantic shopping, stressing about money, worrying everything I bought or made for everyone is just completely wrong I lose track of the season. This is what my "perfect" Christmas would look like.
We would pare our activities down to 3 meaningful adventures: A sleigh ride with hot cocoa, a special and magical church service, and time spent in nature, walking and gathering natural decorations for our home.
You might notice that I don't have any volunteer activities in my list...I feel that this is something to spend the rest of the year working on. Many agencies find they are overwhelmed with help over the holidays (which is a wonderful problem to have) so I prefer to help at other, less busy times.
And of course, Christmas wouldn't be complete without time with family. But I wish we could take one whole day just to spend with each family and make it meaningful~start with a light brunch and then sing carols and walk outside, later returning to savor the experience of opening a few choice gifts and then maybe all preparing a dinner together. Time...that is what is missing from my holidays I think. Time to savor. Time to really capture what is going on around me; it's what memories are made of...
1 comment:
I agree that simple pleasures are to be treasured. In fact, simple activities are often the ones I think about most fondly. I think that time is a precious gift and trying to find peace and a learning opportunity in every activity that you do is important. Life is short and striving for goals is important, but so is enjoying the journey! PI
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