Monday, December 5th, 7.56 a.m.My daughters and I are crammed in the hallway putting on our shoes, insuring schoolbag contents and making last minute hair-checks in the mirror. We are on our way out for another routine week of school and work.
Then without warning my youngest daughter grins at me: "Mom it's December 5th. When are we going to decorate our Christmas tree"?
Oh no, someone has just hit the Christmas festivities panic button!
Now don't get me wrong. I like Christmas as much as anybody. Scratch that. I love Christmas! It's warm and cuddly and it makes you feel fuzzy all over (or is it the other way around?). However, it's December 5th and I don't feel Christmasy yet.
I heard George Michael's "Last Christmas" playing on the radio last night and I wondered "What? Already"? I don't appreciate the early Christmas window displays. Some merchants had a jump start as early as mid-November (Yikes!). The TV's flooded with Barbie & Action Man commercials. The games -or more fitly, the sales- are afoot.
I looked into my kid's innocent eyes and said "Well, one of these days". And the ageless parent-child back-and-forth began. "When?" "Soon." "When's soon?" "Soon is when I say so", etc.
Maybe I'm getting older and a dash more cynical, but my mind was in fast forward mode and I was visualizing the dreadful aftermath of Christmas. Packing up and storing for next year's celebration. Deja vu? Maybe. But, I don't feel Christmasy yet! (I stomp my foot, fold my arms across my chest and brood. Santa is probably jotting me down on his "naughty list"!)
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