Shifting Currents
Almost bought an angel. Did buy a Santa. Angels were my wife’s thing, until they weren’t. One Christmas she said no more angels. I guess we were full up. Santa’s just appeared, irregularly. So, it wasn’t very strange for me to buy a Santa. I bought one last year, too. On sale at a hobby store. The angel, however, seemed a step too far. I might just keep them separate, as a stand-alone collection with no more additions. That seems right.
In a year of turning points, this was a turning point Christmas. For the last two years, I’ve gone all in on everything we used to do for Christmas, outside lights everywhere, decorations inside, it was grand. This year no outside lights. I decorated the inside, with a few lights here and there outside, but I sort of stuck to things I enjoyed seeing and doing and made the house look festive when I walked inside. It was great.
The kids didn’t mind. Actually, for the two married kids, the focus of Christmas has shifted over the years to their houses with their kids. Sometimes they’d come up for Christmas, but mostly we came to them. It was what we did as young parents. We got tired of bundling up three kids on Christmas day and trekking around with tired kids who wanted to be home playing with their presents. So, we told everyone, we’re staying home. Come see us, and they did. And now we come see each other, making it up as we go along, changing with the currents of life and the shifting tides. And we still had a merry Christmas because I think that’s in your heart.