An Ode to the Magic Makers

 

The Impossible Girl playing Delivery Elf

Ode to the Makers of Magic

To the Bakers of Cookies

And Hangers of Lights

To the Bells the will Carol

And Keep Spirits Bright

To the Great Stocking Fillers

And Tradition Maintainers

To the Cooks and the Drivers

And Spiritual Sustainers

To those who buy gifts

But forget their own

Because Filling Your Stocking

Would be ego overblown

But when Eyes of Loved ones

Light up with Care

And their joy and excitement

Leaks into the air

The empty stockings don't matter

Because a Gift's just a Thing

To be Lost, Aged, or Broken

As Time takes a Swing

But when All has been Gifted

And all been received,

The Makers of Magic

Find Peaceful Reprieve.    

Christmas Eve is my favorite day of the year. I get to wax nostalgic while I put one more in the books. And as a mother and military spouse, I'm chiefly in charge of working around insane schedules, I haven't had the time or energy to write about a lot of them since moving to Washington and becoming a parent. But Christmas Eve, when all the prep is done and the Christmas fun has been had, I find a deep sense of peace.  As I reflect on what I did well and what I need to work on for next year, I also look back on other Decembers. 

The One about the Paper Tree - A little backstory about my first Christmas in Washington. It's much like now, only I have made a few friends since. I'd moved to Washington from my hometown in spring, and this was my first year so far away from my family. They didn't come to visit and I couldn't go down there - and, of course, My Sailor and I started off our first year married missing every major holiday from October - January. So I got creative and found some joy. It's quite a tale!

The One That Almost Wasn't - The Impossible Girl was 2, and we were really struggling. I mean, during her first 2 years of life, we'd had foreclosure notices on the house, had the electricity and water turned off at different moments, and struggled to feed ourselves - however we still 'made too much' to qualify for aid. Lucky, our situation didn't stay that way, but a couple years were REALLY rough. This one was definitely a year where we learned about grace in a while new way.

The One in Ensenada - The December before Covid, the stars aligned, and we were able to book a Disney Cruise over the holiday leave period (we don't get that leave this year).  What I mean is, his Leave Dates aligned with a Cruise that was on a deep Military Discount, and he'd gotten a bonus that would cover it and a little more. We were a little concerned about taking a cruise for Christmas, but Disney somehow managed to make the whole thing so effortless that we all can't wait to do it again. So 3 years later, we got lucky and did it again (to a different destination).  Unfortunately, we likely won't be able to take this path again until 2027 or later, but man, was it ever fantastic!

We don't have set traditions in this house - which isn't something I expected. I've always found solace in traditions. 

But maybe, just maybe, a healthy sense of wanderlust IS a holiday tradition?

Or maybe I could just use a vacation....