Abby and I are preparing to host Christmas this week. The kids (Abby’s daughter Chele, husband Tom, and our grandson Paul) are coming on the 26th and staying through New Year’s Day.
I have decorated and shopped and cleaned and prepped. Now, more. No, really. This kind of thing seems perpetual, and is never finished. And you can’t do it a month before: the dogs will chew up a poo where you shampooed the carpet. The bathroom mirrors get splashed. The sink gets full of dishes. You know what it’s like.
Readers familiar with my cadre of work will recall that I don’t love Christmas. Not only is it a bone of religious contention (the pretend “War on Christmas”), it’s also a bitter reminder of how much we trivialize ourselves with commercialism. I talked about this in my column this week.
What do I like about Christmas? I love the photography most of all. I love that my wife loves it so tenderly. I love that we usually get to see the kids.
I will let you know how this Christmas stacks up. In the mean time, have a peaceful one.
I do hope you (and everyone else) has a happy Christmas (and whatever other holidays people celebrate around this time of year). I hope you eat well, and see people you enjoy seeing, and find shows you enjoy watching, and hear music you enjoy hearing.
I enjoyed your column quite a bit, by the way (except for the “prayer and fasting” line, of course). Your conclusion is admirable : “think more about the good things”. We could all probably use this advice, and not just around Christmas.
Salut.
I really don’t mind Christmas, even the commercial aspect of it (to a certain degree). It brings back pleasant childhood memories and gives me an opportunity to create similar memories for my kids. I spent most of today reassuring my son that he actually *was* good at times — he had started to really worry that Santa had tabulated all his poor behavior.
Hope you and yours have a great one.
Beautiful photos as always. I hope you get much enjoyment this year!
Boodaleeah-dah.