The Most Wonderful Time Of  The Year?

It’s exactly fourteen days until Christmas 2024 as I write this column.  To be honest, for the past two weeks, I’ve been feeling a little Grinchy with a side of Ellen Griswold thrown in for good measure.  In fact, I’ve been uttering “You serious, Clark” many times to my spouse.

I’m behind the eightball, as usual in my holiday preparations.  I know, I know – I do this every.single.year.  And every.single.year, I loudly proclaim that “next year will be different!”  Spoiler alert – it’s *never* different.

In my visits and text with my cousin Lisa, I have been lamenting, “I’m a hot mess!”  Lisa just chuckles as I dramatically flail unto her living room couch and gaze upon her festive tree and decorations.  She also scores bonus points for her house being immaculate.  She even politely laughs after I explain to her that her birthday presents are somewhere in my mounds and mounds of Christmas presents that need to be unboxed and wrapped.

My husband and I spent our 42nd wedding anniversary earlier this week putting up our living room tree together – and we are still married, which is quite a remarkable feat.  He even hung up the fireplace mantle lights and assembled my many outdoor decorations.

I looked online at the Letters To Santa from kids wanting presents.  There were many, many letters from ADULTS in their 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s and even 60s imploring “Santa” to stuff their stockings and put presents under their tree. A few even asked for the tree.  Some of the lists were pretty much demands – 1 year olds wanted iPads and iPhones! “YOU SERIOUS, CLARK” was shouted by Moi several times.  PlayStation 5 systems, Oculus headsets, Versace bathrobes (must be pink!), dirt bikes, go-karts, designer clothes, purses, luggage and perfume, professional sports jerseys, the list went on and on.  Adults asked for vacations to Italy, 60” smart TVs, new cars (one lady asked for a Honda, Kia or Mustang), new furniture for their homes and in a couple of instances – they flat out requested a new house!

Reading all of this made me feel very stabby and I was afraid to gaze into the mirror because I was certain that I was turning green like the Grinch!  I mean, come on man – my own grandkids only asked Santa for 1 gift each in their Letters to Santa and the items were less than $50!

I chose to purchase a lot of items for Operation Christmas Child and to also buy hats, gloves, scarves and treats for local Veterans.  We also continued our tradition of buying wreaths for the Wreaths Across America campaign to be placed on Veterans graves.

I headed out to Clintonville, Pennsylvania this afternoon to meet up with Professional Truck Driver Chuck Andrews who was bringing wreaths that we will place on Veterans graves in three days. It started to snow as I was sitting in the parking lot and soon, I felt as though I was inside a snow globe as huge, white snowflakes danced all around me.  It was cold – and I would like to say that I embrace Elsa’s mantra of “the cold never bothered me anyway,” but alas, this mini snow squall took me by surprise and I was only in a lightweight jacket with no hat or gloves.  Chuck and the WWA Clintonville Volunteers were smiling and laughing and working without complaint to unload the hundreds of wreaths. 

On my drive home, I stopped several times on the back roads to capture the beauty and serenity of the landscape and trees adorned with a fresh blanket of snow.  In that moment, Ellen Griswold left my body and a sense of hope and wonder filled my senses.  The Grinch was still invading my thoughts as I contemplated his sage ponderings, “Maybe Christmas, doesn't come from a store. Maybe Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.”

And then I arrived back to my office with a deadline to meet and a house waiting for the rest of the decorations to be placed and the presents to be wrapped.  But as I walked through the door of our Homestead, I realized that for all the hustle and bustle of the holidays, it truly is the most wonderful time of the year!

Wishing all of you a healthy, happy and prosperous New Year. And Lisa, I hope to find your birthday presents in the next couple of days.  What can I say, “I’m a hot mess!”