Sparks Ignites

It’s the holiday season, soon to be a new year We’ve shopped and we’ve wrapped, and we’ve tried to spread cheer. The halls have been decked and the trees are all glowing, And we’re dreaming of a “White Christmas”, although it hasn’t been snowing. We’ve hugged and we’ve kissed, and hung mistletoe from the ceiling. We are trying to spread that merry, yuletide feeling. With each card we send, the Christmas spirit should flourish. Peace and good will must prevail; they are never to perish. But something is wrong: the holiday wonder has left. It is part of our aging, an inevitable theft We’ve tried to keep merry and not be a miser, But the innocence of youth fades, as we become older and wiser. As our loved one’s depart, and leave us alone on this earth: We find our world sadder, less filled with true mirth. How can we retain our childhood sense of joy? When the...

Another Christmas is on its way, and the decorations are finally completed. I can relax now, write out my holiday cards by the glow of the tree and enjoy Miracle on 34 th Street .   I am watching the second snowfall of the season, so perhaps we will have a white Christmas. As much as I love the holiday, and the postcard view from my window, this year is going to be difficult. With all my decorations safely packed away in the storage room, I contemplated not creating my holiday display this year. “Let’s skip Christmas!” was ruminating in my mind. Christmas is such a time filled with wonderful childhood memories and family traditions. Could I enjoy the festive occasion this year with the passing of my mother this November? Both my parents are gone now, and that childhood connection seems lost. The wonder and excitement is overshadowed by loss and loneliness. There will be no hugs and kisses to be shared with my parents. No gifts or the all-important Hallmark...