Christmas Blessings

A six-hour drive to Michigan, and tonight the monkey children are all nestled and snug in their...air mattresses, as visions of sugarplums dance in their heads.  Actually, it's probably dreams of Lego Dimensions, Nerf guns, and One Direction CD's.  But dreams and innocence of a child nonetheless.

As we drove down the road, arriving at my mother's house for the holiday season, the glow of her Christmas tree was visible as we pulled into the driveway.  It's not the family home that I was returning to, but just the same, that glow of lights through the window was enough to make me smile and break into song, "There's no place like home for the holidays".

This Christmas I know and appreciate so very much the love of my family around me.

I have a full holiday planned with my mother, brother, and grandparents.  Family members that I love but cannot see or spend time with except for the few times of the year that we make this return trip "home."

It was in the middle of creating pies for tomorrow's Christmas feast, that I realized I had never made a pie with my mom before tonight. (The whole pie-baking skill is something I only just recently acquired.)  I smiled as she taught me her secrets and we created four beautiful works of pastry art for Christmas dinner.
We schemed as she wrapped her remaining gifts, even as the youngest awoke from his sugarplums vision, to wander into the bathroom.  We giggled together seeing his impending concern that there were still no gifts under tree - what was taking Santa so long to arrive?

In the middle of my personal Norman Rockwell Christmas Eve, I had to stop and remember.  I thought of 3 of my closest friends at home who are missing their parents this holiday season.  I am very blessed to have both parents still here but I often take it for granted.  May we never get so busy and wrapped up in the craziness of the season to forget those whose hearts are still healing instead of celebrating with the rest of us.