All I Want for Christmas (is World Peace) - (Timbuk3)

Fact:  The last time I posted here was August 22, 2022.  

Thought:  I will stop apologizing... to myself, as well as to whomever might be reading this blog.  

Intention:  I have vowed to post more often, starting today, with no obligatory schedule, because I love to write and I miss it when I don't.  So mote it be... 💖

Interesting in that, when I began this blog draft earlier in the week, I had written:  "My life is pretty d*mn amazing right now".  Whew, what a difference three days makes, right?  Yet I am improving my ability to channel my inner Kahlil Gibran, reminding myself that without sorrow we wouldn't know joy.  Family Drama:  normal.  Overwhelmedness (especially at this time of year):  typical.  Disrupted Sleep Patterns:  horrible during the pandemic, evened out, back to sporadic 3 a.m. two-hour bouts of reading until I get tired enough to try again.

However, I appear to uncharacteristically have my sh*t together this Christmas... and it's still 11 days away!  The house is decorated; I actually put out my Santa collection this year (which I hadn't for a few), and am so much enjoying the vibe as well as the stories behind each one.  Season's Greetings cards will go in the mail early next week.  (Most of the) Presents are wrapped.  My Spotify holiday playlist is in process of being created; then I will share.  This all feels too good to be true. Who am I and what have I done with Susan?!?  Will publish this post and read for a few hours until my modus operandi of panic and frenzy creeps back in (ha ha ha ha ha!)... 💞

In the meantime, some specific moments of loveliness (as well as hilarity):

~ We were invited to join Sarah and Colin, along with J (her boyfriend) and his four kids plus his sister and her daughter, as well as both sets of G families at the Oasis Church for their annual holiday lights extravaganza, complete with train ride... fake snow (Colin:  "it's just bubbles, Lala!)... old-school Frosty the Snowman movie projected on the building wall... popcorn/S'Mores/hot chocolate... and Christmas trivia.  Okay, so temps are still in the 70s-80s here; it's the Spirit that counts, right?... and our Caravan of Chaos had plenty of that... 🎄

~ A few nights later we went to Sarah's to assist in decorating her tree; more stories with each ornament:  the glitter-card-lace Taco Bell ashtray (Sarah's Girl Scout Troop creation, when they still allowed smoking in restaurants!)... Dad's Favorite Child (bought at Cracker Barrel decades ago on a trip to Atlanta for Christmas; yes, each of our three received one, and Rob's is black, to differentiate his from Eric's!)... a glass heart with Colin's handprint, which Sarah helped him make during the pandemic/Christmas 2020!.  The final touch was tinsel (which my mom loved and I always hated, because it made such a mess), and we had fun showing Colin how to gently separate two or three strands and place them at the end of a branch (my mom's modus operandi).  And, when we sat down to admire our handiwork, Sarah played two special songs on her phone:  My Way (my mom's all-time favorite), and Silent Night (my husband's dad's favorite carol).  Bliss!

~ My niece's partner is a kindergarten teacher, and she asked on Facebook for donations of books to her 20 students; pick a number and she would assign us a child, and we could choose from a pre-determined Wish List.  I offered up 8, I got Emmett ("a boy's boy", she said); her offerings were sweet abd thoughtful but, reading her description of his personality made me want to introduce him to the story of my favorite pacifist bull (noted below), so I asked L, if she deemed it appropriate, to please add it to her list.  Hard to believe it was published in 1936, 86 years ago!  Still so relevant and, because it's such a classic, I sent the hardcover edition... ☮

~ Hilarious meme:

Speaking of, I haven't yet had my annual viewing of the latter yet (the Joni CD was better than that d*mn garish necklace anyway... right, Emma?); also, did you know about The Laughter & Secrets of Love Actually: 20 Years Later (a Diane Sawyer Special) on Hulu?  I highly recommend!

NR (Now Reading):  Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver; set in Appalachia, it's a modern re-telling of David Copperfield and, although only a third of the way through, I'm captivated!

SONG:  All I Want for Christmas (is World Peace) - (Timbuk3)

BOOK:  The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf (illustrated by Robert Lawson)

POEM:  Nest by Jeffrey Harrison

It wasn’t until we got the Christmas tree

into the house and up on the stand

that our daughter discovered a small bird’s nest

tucked among its needled branches.

Amazing, that the nest had made it

all the way from Nova Scotia on a truck

mashed together with hundreds of other trees

without being dislodged or crushed.

 

And now it made the tree feel wilder,

a balsam fir growing in our living room,

as though at any moment a bird might flutter

through the house and return to the nest.

And yet, because we’d brought the tree indoors,

we’d turned the nest into the first ornament.

So we wound the tree with strings of lights,

draped it with strands of red beads,

and added the other ornaments, then dropped

two small brass bells into the nest, like eggs

containing music, and hung a painted goldfinch

from the branch above, as if to keep them warm.

QUOTE:  "Keep a green tree in your heart and perhaps a songbird will come." ~ Chinese proverb

Hello in There (John Prine)

8 Simple Ways To Be Civilized And Kind That Could Make The World a Better Place
September 29th, 2008 by Danielle LaPorte

When asked what he thought of Western Civilization, Ghandi replied,“I think it would be a great idea.”

1. When you allow another driver or pedestrian to cut in front of you, isn’t it great to get The Wave? That simple hand gesture that says, thanks bud’, how cool of you to let me in.

2. When you take someone out or have them over for dinner, doesn’t it make you feel so appreciated when they give you a quick call or email the next day to acknowledge the treat?

3. A little “hello” or “g’day” when walking by someone on an otherwise empty sidewalk is so civil and sweet. (Ignoring each other in such close and fleeting proximity is dismally absurd.)

4. When a telemarketer calls, we try to resist the burning urge to be horribly rude (after all, they’re just trying to make a living.) Try this quickie: I appreciate that this is your job, but I’m not the right person for your questions, so I’m going to hang up now. Thank you anyway. Your simple kindness could renew their faith in humanity.

5. Personally, we like to receive voice mail messages that specify the reason that the person is calling. (When someone just says “Hi it’s So-and-So, can you give me a call back?” We wonder if we’re in trouble, or feel frustrated that we can’t move things forward in the mean time.)

6. How about just saying thanks when you leave the office, the gym, or class? It’s simple: See you tomorrow, thanks. There is always something to be thankful for.

7. Muster the love and courage to make eye contact with street peddlers—whether you’re giving them money or not. They feel invisible.

8. Spitting on the sidewalk is illegal in Switzerland. ‘Nuff said.

THIS WEEK: Adopt one new way of being civilized and kind. Be sure to notice how you feel in your moment of courteousness.

And even if the dignity is not reciprocated, know that the being classy is a lifestyle that has its own rewards. Manners are, as Ralph Waldo Emerson puts it, “the happy way of doing things; each one a stroke of genius and love.” So, maybe holding doors and sending thank you notes can change the world after all.

SONG: Hello in There by John Prine

BOOK(S): How to Behave and Why by Munro Leaf

Everyday Graces: Child's Book Of Good Manners by Karen Santorum

POEM: I’m Making a List by Shel Silverstein

I’m making a list of the things I must say
For politeness,
And goodness and kindness and gentleness,
Sweetness and rightness:
Hello
Pardon me
How are you?
Excuse me
Bless you
May I?
Thank you
Goodbye
If you know some that I’ve forgot,
Please stick them in your eye!

QUOTE: "Manners are a sensitive awareness of the feelings of others. If you have that awareness, you have good manners, no matter which fork you use." ~ Emily Post