From year to year, it is all too easy to forget one very important truth:
It comes without ribbons,
It comes without tags
It comes without packages boxes or bags
Christmas isn’t about the Dolly in the Corner. It’s not about what’s under the tree, or what’s on it, it’s about who’s around it. No matter where you are in the world or how far apart you are. It’s about who you open your arms to and who you share your heart with.
People become so obsessed with what Christmas can get them, the lists run long and the expectations run high. People negotiate how much they want to spend on each other to avoid hurt feelings, people agonize over the right Christmas card, over the right wrapping paper – do you get blue or red? Does Aunt Martha want shiny paper or white string? It all gets so complicated…
So complicated that we forget.
We forget the laughter, we forget the feeling of laughing so hard that you almost fall over from the sheer joy of it, from the smiles that come with reciting every line of a Christmas Carol because you’ve heard it a million bittersweet times, you forget that the sugar cookies taste better if you thought of someone you loved while you made them, that mince tarts don’t have ot be made from scratch to taste delicious..
We forget so many things that are so desperately important…
This Christmas, to say that it was a long time coming is an understatement. Things were disorganized and even my family – who are usually the ultimate Yuletiders – got off to a rough start. But in the end? It came down to Christmas Eve, and watching Christmas movies by the fire and the tree, and hanging stockings that we know will have little in them this year, and that doesn’t matter, because that couldn’t be further from what it’s about.
What I wish for all of you this holiday season: is that you remember all those important things. As I say every year: remember the oranges. I wish you all love, and warmth and safety and acceptance. And the patience and tolerance to wait and work for the things that are worth the most to everyone. Fairy tales are work, but the happy ending never comes in the middle of the story, I wish for all of you to enjoy the journey.
Because after all, holidays or not, life is all about the ride.
Wishing you all the most joyous of yuletides.
Bright blessings
Shaughnessy