Happy Holidays

I’d like to say Happy Hanukah and Merry Christmas and also Happy New Year, but how can that fit in the title spot? And if it did fit, how would Google index this post? It couldn’t, and so I won’t. It’s a series of Holidays, after all, and though we all celebrate different things in different ways, I would assume we’d all like those days to be happy. I was supposed to be in Washington, DC right now, a trip I intended to refer to as DC in DC, or DC Squared, which would have bothered my family immensely, but the forecast snowstorm put an end to those plans. I don’t really even like Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, largely because I dislike Steve Martin’s variety of humor, so finding myself in a real life version of that movie was not something I could abide.

I’m struggling to find the holiday cheer that I once had, and I’m not entirely sure why. I think it has something to do with growing up, something that switches and makes us more aware of the things that interrupt our best wishes for happiness and peace. That might be it, but I can’t be sure. I think I also find myself wishing for the simplicity of my childhood christmases, where remote control cars were the holy grail and a long car ride to Princeton, Illinois immediately followed our Christmas morning unwrapping. I don’t want to be one of those people who wish for things to be the way they once were, because to do so robs my own children of the memories and traditions that they’re busy creating and enjoying, but man it sure does seem that a life made more simple might be better.

Alas, simplicity is not something I do well, so who am I kidding? I could make things extremely simple, but instead I’ll drive around stressing and pressing and hope that this coming week is one where I can find some gratitude and calm. From my family to yours, I wish you a peaceful week of celebrations.