The Real Magic Of Christmas

I got up this morning at 4 a.m. to put the turkey in the oven - decided to stay up and do my morning ritual at the computer. This has become my favorite part of the day. The time of day when I check in with myself to see where I'm at - the time I check in with my friends to see where they are at.

I read somewhere once that life is what happens to you amongst your plans. Christmas is like that - you plan things, but they almost never quite go like you thought they would. And it is always the unexpected things that bring you the most joy.

We arrived home from town yesterday with a full afternoon of work scheduled to get ready for Christmas evening. An old friend stopped in unexpectedly. I haven't seen him for many months - he is working out of town now plus he is getting more call for photography work which he is extremely gifted at. We spent a couple hours "catching up".

While we were visiting, the woman I worked for three years back in her preschool called to wish me a "Merry Christmas". She calls me every Christmas and every Easter. It is so wonderful when people take the time out of a busy life to make you a part of these special holidays.

Shortly after my friend left, my husband's nephew stopped in unexpectedly for a visit. He left his family at home to celebrate Christmas without him; and drove 14 hours to spend Chritmas Eve and Christmas Day with his grandmother who is in the hospital with pneumonia. It could possibly be her last Christmas as she has been battling cancer for a few years now. He baked her favorite cookies for her, brought some gifts with him for her, and brought lots of movies for them to watch together.

My brother had to go home early. He is recuperating from knee surgery - is still in a lot of pain. My sister stayed and visited, though, after her family left. It was very nice. We used to be really close. We were married to brothers - she much longer than I - probably forty years compared to my twenty.

Her husband had been sick for years when my husband died. Then three years later, her husband died. Our grief kept us apart - our family isn't good at comforting one another. And we are more inclined to withdraw from others to lick our wounds.

I have never told her how much I love her - because we don't talk about such things in my family. I have never told her how much I missed her these past years - because we don't do that in my family either.

And yesterday, I didn't tell any of these people that "THIS IS CHRISTMAS" but it was - and it is - the rest is just frosting on the cake.