Welcome December

As the calendar turned to December I've been thinking of all the holiday pleasures we won't enjoy this year: 

Seeing friends and meeting new people at dinner parties, or at any parties or events at all   

Slowly browsing in craft fairs and art exhibits

Catching the buzz of activity in the malls 

Enjoying the colors and designs of the decorated stores

Eating out at special restaurants

And then there's not having friends over for Christmas Eve and no possibility of safe travel to see far-flung family.  The holiday long lost its religious meaning for me and I only buy a few gifts now.  The days of charming children with trails of reindeer food around the Christmas tree are just wonderful memories.  

Thinking like this led me to consider not doing much at all for the holidays.  But, oh boy, do I need some relief from the worry about the virus, not to mention the ugliness of our country's current political situation.   I found myself remembering the words of a song of from the Broadway musical, Mame, when she sings "We need a little Christmas right this very minute!" 

I thought about the things of the holiday season that I do love, and decided to bring more peace and joy into my life by focusing on them instead on the lost pleasures of the season.   

 So, since I love holiday lights we lit up the Spruce by our sidewalk and put up the biggest wreath our door will hold.   We enjoy seeing these signs of the season and right away we heard from a neighbor who told us how pretty and festive it looked.    

I love holiday decorations so we put up a tabletop tree and decorated the mantle, which instantly added a note of cheer to the house.  

And holiday music, especially instrumental, so I found my old "Christmas playlist" and am now listening to George Winston's soothing piano solos from his December album.  I'm going to make a point to play seasonal music each day. 

I like doing good deeds this time of year, and there are so many ways to give besides donating money to good causes,   One thing I'm going to focus on is taking the time to connect with the people I see throughout the day.  Behind our masks it's all too easy to ignore other people completely, but there are safe ways to acknowledge each other.  So often just a friendly comment can make someone's day.

And let's not forget food!  Making and eating Christmas cookies is a pleasure and this year I've asked a friend if she'd like to do a cookie exchange, which is something new for me.  The possibilities are endless for great meals on Christmas Eve and Christmas and the planning is half the fun.    

Welcome, December!