Christmas Cardinals

My dad was a baseball fan and the St Louis Cardinals were his team.  He passed on the love of baseball to both my sister and me.  In turn, I passed it on to my son.  Via Grandpa, JT became a Cardinals fan.  Some of my fondest memories are the sound of the two of them on the phone, dissecting their team’s prospects and celebrating their triumphs.   My Dad’s passing earlier this year made the 2023 baseball season bittersweet for me.  But I’ve found comfort in memories of Dad brought on by cardinals.  This set reminds me of the joy he found in his three grandsons.  It’s made me happy all of the holiday season, a reminder that Dad is still here to celebrate his boys, cheer on his team, condemn Republican stupidity, and look after us.

Alchemy For Peace

Each year’s Christmas tree is a beauty all its own.  The magic of twinkling lights on a tree bejeweled with ornaments that tell the story of my life is never lost on me. I welcome the light it brings in December’s darkness.   

The world is a hard place right now and for me the tree is a reminder to be grateful for the many blessings in my life.  Tonight it seems especially lovely and my heart is grateful. I hope that this bit of holiday joy can be a beacon for more peace in a world that badly needs it.  

Among the Trees: A Christmas Tradition

 All year long, I’ve reserved the 5th of each month for a post about the places I go for walks.  Mostly, I like to walk in the woods and most frequently, I walk in the woods at Colonial Park.  Since my hip took its turn to  dreadful in August, I haven’t really been able to go for a walk.  As I wait for the hip replacement I so desperately need, I’ve become more and more disabled.  These days, I can stand for just a few minutes and only walk very short distances.  I haven’t been to Colonial Park since September.  I could go, of course, and sit on a bench and admire the nature around me, but I have found doing so very sad, not the source of peace and joy that it once was.  Deep inside me, is a fury and anger about the way in which denial of healthcare has served to disable me further.  Being forced to sit in a place I once walked in is yet another reminder that my life doesn’t matter because I am fat.   It’s hard enough to live as I do right now without that reminder.  I’m saving my favorite places for that point in the future when I’ve lost enough weight to be allowed a new hip.  But trees are my evidence that the universe is splendid and I do take time to admire them.  This month, that came in the form of a trip to select our Christmas tree.  JT led the adventure, which enabled me to be confident that I could walk and stand long enough.  We visited Home Depot at twilight and the rows of balsams and fir trees smelled amazing.  

This year we chose a balsam tree and JT loaded it up, secured it in the stand, and then brought it inside for us to decorate.  

The house smells amazing and soon enough, this gem will have twinkling lights and ornaments.  Choosing a tree is one of my favorite Christmas traditions and I’m grateful that JT helped to make it happen this year.

Making Merry

We had a quiet but happy Christmas.  The tree was lovely, as Christmas trees always seem to be.  Santa paid us a visit and filled our stockings.

There was a Christmas feast.

We talked with family, laughed together, and counted our many blessings in this most difficult of years.  Merry Christmas, y’all!

A Happy Christmas

We had a busy holiday at Sassafras House.  My parents are visiting, JT is home, and the little kitchen was put to the test.  In the midst of all the busyness and conversations, I enjoyed the quiet of lighting the paper bag luminaries that are a Christmas Eve tradition in my town.

On Christmas Eve, I paused to admire the tree with its twinkly lights and pretty packages.

Playing Santa is always a treat…

…even if my “believer” is rather large.

Tiger enjoyed his cat nip treat.

It was nice to have my parents at the table for Christmas supper.

It was a simple day of happy traditions and I enjoyed it very much. 

That’s happy!

Memory Tree

On Saturday evening, T and I got the year’s Christmas tree and set it in the  stand.  Yesterday, I got out the Christmas decorations and set to work with lights for the tree, stockings for the banister, and all the happy traditions that are the backdrop for our celebrations.

Over the years, I've come to regard the twinkly lights and festive decorations as one of the best parts of December, a welcome antidote to the fading daylight as the Winter solstice approaches.  The cheerful decoration and lights make our home welcoming and cozy.

Hanging ornaments on the tree is more than just a pleasing tradition, it’s a chance to think about some very happy memories.  When I hang one of my very first Christmas ornaments, one that hung on the trees I put up in my apartment in Nashville many years ago, I think about how much I loved living in that city.

There is a Santa ornament that reminds me of a boy who believed with all his heart, a joy and confidence that was magic to experience.

Each year, I give JT an ornament that he can one day take to his own home and tree.  This guitar was the ornament JT received the year he was three and was obsessed with a toy guitar.

For many years, JT received a moose for Christmas.  Over the years, there have been moose stuffed toys, books with a moose, a moose figurine in his stocking.  This moose Christmas ornament, part of JT’s collection, reminds me all those moose surprises over the years.

This tiny mercury glass bauble was a gift to myself many years ago, when I was first a Mama on my own.  Things were sometimes hard then and I worried that holidays would also be hard.  But that first Christmas on our own was joyful and lovely.  This ornament reminds me to believe in myself. 

I could go on; my mind swims with memories as I hang the ornaments on the tree.  It is in the stories  these ornaments tell that I find the magic of the season.  

That’s happy!

December front porch

Over the Thanksgiving weekend, my neighbors spent the sunny and breezy Saturday setting out their Christmas lights and outdoor decorations.  I saved the task for Sunday, the first day of December.

As decisions go, it was a chilly one.

A cold rain fell all day and when I got my things together in the afternoon it was cold and icy.  Happily, porch decoration is one of my favorite things to do each month and so I wasn’t deterred by the wintery conditions.  The flag welcomes the Winter weather.

The table is cheerful and I am pleased with the fairy Christmas tree, which lights up in the evening.

There is greenery everywhere.

The fresh pine wreath on the front door smells lovely when I come home each afternoon.

Christmas decorations, with greenery and light, always feels magical to me and I enjoy all the traditions of the month. Merry, merry!

Christmas Eve

Today is a  happy day of preparation and anticipation.  It’s not like the days when a little boy anticipated Santa’s imminent arrival, but it’s nice even so.  In my town, Santa rides around on a fire truck all day with sirens and whistles and that creates a certain thrill.  My paper bag luminaries, another town tradition, light the front walk.

The last of the packages were wrapped and placed under the tree.

There is candlelight and fairy lights to brighten the darkness.

There are snacks to enjoy and games to be played.

I will never tire of these lovely traditions.  They put the sparkle on my holidays and that’s merry.

Christmas Tree

The tradition of a piney Christmas tree is one of the most lovely parts of the season.  I love the smell that envelops the house when the tree comes inside.  I chose this year's tree on Friday night and on Saturday morning we brought it inside.

T helped me to secure it in the stand and then she cut the mesh off so that the branches could unfurl.

Lights were added.

On Sunday evening, T put hooks on the ornaments and I hung them on the tree.  Each year, the ornaments bring on a flood of happy holiday memories.  When the happy task is complete, the tree is lovely.

Presents have been added and more will join them before Christmas morning. All of it is a sweet-smelling reminder of the many blessings we enjoy.  That’s happy!

December 11: Pretty Packages

The wrapping season has begun and now that the Christmas tree is up, I take time each evening to wrap a package or two. 

 These are the first two presents under the tree; more will follow.  That’s happy!

Small Celebrations

One of the things I most enjoy about December are the small traditions that feel like tiny celebrations of the season: the carved snowmen in the window sill.

A garland and lights on the stair railing.

Candlelight and wooden carved trees I’ve had since I lived in Los Angeles.

Pretty ribbons to tie around packages.

A holiday mug for my morning coffee.

A sprig of cranberry tucked in a plant.

The list is long and lovely.  The older I get, the more that these little traditions become the beating heart of my Christmas celebration.  Eventually, the Christmas tree will be decorated and presents piled underneath it.  There will be holiday meals and the laughter of loved ones.  These big celebrations will be happy.  But it it is in the little moments of December that I find the peaceful spirit of the season.

December Front Porch

After the squirrel feeding frenzy that was the November front porch, December is a snack-free porch zone.  Instead, there is greenery, pinecones, and lights.

My town loves holiday lights and come December the homes are lit up in celebration.  Twilight arrives early in December and the lights are a cheerful welcome as I drive home in the fading light.  My porch has a string of Edison lights on a timer so that the twilight on the porch is less dark

My home welcomes me inside with the smell of evergreen.

So far, December has been cold.  There hasn’t been snow but were it to fall, it would certainly stick.  This weekend I will decorate the Christmas tree and put up the decorations in the house.  The porch is the advance guard in my celebration and that’s quite happy!