Reflections of the Season

Christmas was good for us this year. The bubble permeated the house and friends have called to say that Saturday night was one of the best parties that they've been to. Nothing makes me happier than to see faces relax and conversation and laughter flow at a party.

Plans to attend a dinner party on Christmas Eve were canceled when the hosts called announcing that it was their turn to endure the flu that is going around. Ech. An unexpected visit from my friend Kathy brought word of a 7 PM Christmas Eve service that we decided to attend last minute.

DH grew up going to Congregational Church and wanted to share the experience with the kids. I learned this year that he enjoys the pagant and all of the pomp and circumstance around it. Which surprised me because he considers himself a Christian Atheist. hmm.

Me, grown up with out any religion but always had a Christmas tree. My dad's side is Catholic. My dad left the church with a flip of the bird and never went back, and never talked with us about it. Church and religion is "one of those things" that one didn't talk about.

Later as an adult I enjoyed the quietness of Midnight Mass.

This year I was ambivalent about going to church. But what we ended up in was a community church lead by an ex-hippie. The pews were decorated with giant light up glow sticks. A giant version of Lecrams flashy lighter in his Christmas Vlog. The pastor was sitting with his guitar plugged into a small amp and we sang carols while Brother slept in my lap and Sister squirmed in her seat wondering when it would all be over. It was a very low key affair and DH said that next year we would have to do something...we'll see.

Santa was good to the kids and I even had a couple of surprise gifts in my stocking. I usually just buy my own gifts so that I can have something to open too. Though that doesn't seem so important any longer.

The oddest gift I received was a watch from my DH. It's odd because I don't wear a watch. I don't like them. Time is a beast of a controller and I rebel by not wearing a watch. My life is ruled by a clock and I detest it. So why did my husband gift me a watch? It was an exercise in gratitude and appreciation to say thank you and find attractive things about the watch. I bit my tongue and found that positive attributes about that watch and to say thank you for the surprise. It is an attractive watch as far as wristwatches go. DH wanted to surprise me and he did. But I shake my head with a perplexed knot in my brows. He is a good man but it is really frustrating when the gifts he chooses for me show that he doesn't really know me. The necklace and earrings that the kids picked out for me were great! I love the colors etc. It's nice to see that the kids do notice things about their mom.

I've already finished reading the book that Kathy gifted me. Spent most of Christmas Day reading it while DH entertained himself with cooking a turkey dinner. It's a fabulous book about intergenerational healing titled, "Mother, Heal My Self"

I've promised to take the kids out of the house to do something exciting today but I feel like cocooning instead. The book is still swimming in my head and I'm working on figuring out what the direction for the next year will be for me. More cleansing and clearing perhaps. The other word showing up in conversation is "authentic". Perhaps I shall dub the upcoming year the "Year of Living Authentically"

peace