Yesterday we removed the last of the Christmas decorations and stowed them for the next eleven months. Just as it’s fun to see the tree emerge and my snowmen collection follow, it always feels good to return our home to its pre-decorated condition. For every time there is a season . . .
Now we’re returning to our normal routine. Earl went to Bible study this morning at the crack of dawn; I returned to piano lessons at a more reasonable hour. I checked the scale to see if my New Year’s resolution of losing seven pounds had started to take effect. I also began to collect data for our upcoming income tax preparation, while Earl updated his calendar with various events. It was a most mundane day.
Perhaps that’s one thing that makes the holidays special. They’re a diversion from our usual routines. They can also be added work if those routines are stress-filled and over-scheduled in the first place. But this was not the case for me this year.
I quit my job in late July, a job that I loved but which was unusually stressful in December. So this was the first year in memory that I didn’t squeeze holiday preparations around my work. In many ways, they became my work. I visited with old acquaintances (not referring necessarily to age here), took time to reminisce, enjoyed a homemade fruitcake from a dear friend, saw another friend I hadn’t seen in a few years, enjoyed every moment without feeling fatigue. It was wonderful.
Because I enjoyed it fully, I’m not sad about putting the holiday away. Rather, I’m rejuvenated. I look forward to the routine, because for the past four weeks I didn’t have to tend to it.
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