17 to 18. Goodbye, Hello.

2017 where did you go? You came and went in the blink of an eye. You brought the bad and the good. You brought triumph and celebration. You brought us to the top of mountains and down into canyons. You brought laughter and tears. You gave and you took.

I'm laying here on the couch gazing at our Christmas tree that will come down this weekend. We keep the tree up till Epiphany. The mere idea of the tree coming down leaves me longing for it to be Christmas again. I know some are probably thinking why would anyone wish for it to be Christmas again with all the added stresses the holiday can seem to bring. I don't know why, except to say Christmas allows me to reminisce, it allows to build and store fresh new memories. Memories of my childhood Chicago Christmases at my grandparents's house or the ornaments that hang on our tree that we've collected along our world travels offers reflections of great times, and now the vintage ornaments I inherited from my late grandmother hang carefully on our tree. All those things warm my heart. Watching Hallmark Christmas movies with my daughters, while King Ralph moans "they're all different, but the same" enduring every last one with a [pained] smile. Shopping for carefully thought out gifts for our daughters, Prince Charming, nieces and nephew...each gift wrapped with hand made bows. Watching the excitement of them each opening something they hoped for or the pure joy of something totally unexpected. Planning our traditional Christmas Eve dinner--using the china dishes and crystal glasses, dressing up...celebrating styled like the Rockefeller's. Burning an almost unending supply of pine scented candles that fills the house with an aroma liken to standing in the forest. Lights strung that glow on the eve of the house, wreaths that hang on the windows and front door. Just as December 25 came and went in the blink of an eye, all the holiday decor will be boxed up and neatly tucked away. The lights will go dark and the wreaths will come down. We will be left waiting for Christmas 2018.  

Here we are five days into 2018...please be as good, if not better to us! Let work feel less like work and more like a job. Let hearts heal loss and defeat. Let the conflicted souls that of recent seep into our once comfortable world find the courage to seek out professional help. Let us spend more time with friends. Let us laugh and love more. Let us explore new lands, enjoy cocktails by a campfire and hikes on grounds our feet have never touched. Let us feel rich, but not in money.  (Although if we win the lottery I wouldn't mind. lol) 

Then I will close my eyes, open them and boom the bright lights of Christmas will glow once again...and another year will pass. 

If I pass by and say to you "Happy New Year!" Know I mean every ounce of the word "happy!"