Writing Wednesday: Hello Holidaze!

I should be used to it by now. I never get anything "real" done or accomplished between Thanksgiving and New Years - the HOLIDAYS take over.

Not to suggest that's a totally bad thing.

This will be my first Christmas season in 22 years that I have a full-time job with an actual boss and desk job and whatnot. Because as much as being mommy is a full-time-all-the-time job, and writing, editing, etc. are jobs where I'm responsible only to myself, now I have to plan my holidays around conference calls and meetings and deadlines. You know, like most people.

How? I spent over an hour on what had to be one of the most useless conference calls I've been required to attend, and my thoughts kept drifting to the half-decorated tree in my living room and the wrapped ornaments waiting in their containers... luckily I got up at 5 a.m. on Saturday and finished off the Christmas card list before I finished the whole pot of coffee. (there was still a cup left. half a cup.)

And I have cookies to bake for my son and his fellow Air Force cadets, to drop off for the annual cookie wrap party I don't have time to attend. Which reminds me I need to take the butter out of the freezer if it's ever going to thaw. Maybe by the time I get home from the holiday event my neighbor is dragging me to invited me to join her for tonight...

Take a deep breath. You. Me. Everyone.

The Holidays are not about doing it all or squeezing everything in to an already packed schedule. The Holidays are about reconnecting with friends and family, (the point of those holiday cards) and enjoying the little things about the season that only happen this time of the year. The carols on the radio. The smell of pine in the home. Unwrapping the decorations and ornaments that each hold special meanings to your family, and sharing those stories with each other for the umpteenth time as you unwrap each one.

My mother's favorite holiday was Christmas, and she always found new ways to show her love of the season with an excess of gifts, silly or needed, new decorations and ornaments (but never getting rid of the old ones, either) and parties to make sure everyone was included in the laughter and good cheer. Now that she's gone, the holidays haven't been as bright, but I'm starting to see the sparkle again. You won't see it unless you slow down and look. You won't hear the jingle unless you stop and listen. I think that's what I need to focus on, not that she's not here to enjoy it with me, but that the magic is still all around us if we take the time to find it.

If it means you don't find time to write, so be it. Take a break and return in January with a renewed sense of purpose. If it means you're inspired to write - go for it. As long as you make time to absorb the magic of the season around you.