Getting into the spirit of Christmas at last

As you read this article I’m probably recovering from a major food coma at my mother’s house after the sumptuous noche buena feast she prepared. (Truth is, it’s only Monday evening as I write, and I won’t know what the full buffet will look like until Wednesday.) ’Tis the season to forget your diets! We can all make up for it next year, which is only a week away, anyway.

Breathing space

My last gig was on Dec. 18, so I’ve had the last few days to breathe. Christmas shopping was done in stages (a little here and a little there, spread out over the last week). But, we are happy to say that we are all done! Hallelujah!

We had most of the presents professionally wrapped; whatever wasn’t taken care of, I did at home. To get myself in the mood of the holiday season, I turned on a Yellowjackets album titled “Peace Round” that my cousin-in-law Darryl Pellegrini (husband of Rob’s cousin Christine) gave to me many holidays ago.

There was nothing like some good Christmas jazz to get things going. There were a few other Christmas albums on my computer and my phone, so those played as well in healthy rotation.

Like The Grinch

I had been feeling like The Grinch for days leading up to this Christmas week, with the occasional “Bah, humbug!” exiting my lips.

Traffic seems to just get worse with every holiday season, doubling the travel time from point A to point B, and the congestion in the shopping centers are mirroring that on the roadways. There also never seems to be enough time to get everything that needs to be taken care of, done.

Every year Rob and I tell ourselves to get everything done in November, but life sometimes gets in the way, and boom … we’re there in the middle of the hubbub along with the rest of humanity.

Stop, listen

Perhaps all I needed was just a day of peace and quiet … a day of spending time with my family, wrapping presents, treating oneself to a Christmas cookie, and listening to soothing music.

Perhaps I needed to just stop moving, both mentally and physically, and listen to the beat of my heart as it strives to follow the rhythm of the season.

Perhaps I needed to remind myself of why we celebrate this beautiful holiday, that it’s more than just the gifts, the food, and the crowded malls … the display of blinking lights around the neighborhood … that over 2,000 years ago, a child was born Who would save the world.

It worked!

Whatever it was, it seemed to work. I’m actually looking forward to Christmas Day! Which is today. Without a doubt, I am smiling, and it won’t only be due to the food.

From all of us to all of you on this very special day, Merry Christmas! Let’s all have a fantastic start to 2015!