my old country house

All We Want For Christmas

Deja Vu –

(this post is a revised version of one I re visit each year! )

Here we are again – December 23

2 days until the BIG DAY!

the tree is up, packages shipped and ours are under the tree – the cards are sent , And the best part ..All the kids are home! .Happy Holidays are upon us…

The kids in the driveway 2004

It was so easy, when they were small and their hands, little fists really, tucked easily into mine like a puzzle piece and I could fill a shopping cart for $100, wrap it up, or not wrap it up… and Christmas would be done. Sometimes they favored the boxes and the candy canes…but I could rest assured that smiles would erupt Christmas morning…amid the squeals and racket…and it would feel…so very…

…so very Christmassy.

Those magical early years – when everyone believed…and thrills were cheap…are behind us now and any attempts to recapture the first glass of wine fresh buzz …are fruitless…the nauseating over-indulgence, over shopping  is followed by a sharp dip in spirits and I cannot wait to just pack it away and get back to Real life.

I AM SO GRATEFUL TO HAVE ALL THREE OF THE KIDS HOME TOGETHER!!!!

This year, all I want to give my children for Christmas is Peace. On Earth. In their Hearts. And more like the Wizard in Oz than the man in the red flannel suit…I want to give them keys to unlock the things they already have…

I want to give my First-born son , third year in College –  Faith that his dreams are all going to come true, even if they materialize differently that he imagines…or imagined all along they would and into his stocking,  I will stuff the confidence to open his mind to new dreams…should they fit better.

I want to give my only daughter middle child, keeper of the peace… College Sophomore Quiet…the gift of a calm and rested mind and body … Because – It is a marathon, not a sprint and to simply close her eyes and float, blissfully through this break from school.

I want to give my High School Junior, my brilliant and slightly cynical, thoughtful third born son Hope that things All work out…help him know that while much of a day is a colossal  “waste of his time”…his TIME is whatever he makes it, or dreams it to be…and help him know that he holds the key to all of it…right in his pocket…and always has.

Peace. Faith. Quiet.Hope.

 I would break the bank if I could buy these things. But then, what fun would that be? Life is precious and it is meant to be lived. Not bought. But Experienced…. Life is a pearl necklace of days…infinitely better when LIVED and strung together to add up to something beautiful and unique.

All I can really give them, and ALL they really NEED is my LOVE…and that I have in abundance.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND PEACE ON EARTH TO ALL.

4 thoughts on “All We Want For Christmas

  1. I love your thoughts, Lesli. What an amazing gift to your children and to all of us who read it. Merry Christmas and may you and your family have a blessed new year.

  2. So well said, Lesli! Just soak it all in and then tuck away those memories – they are so very sweet to bring out, later in life. Merry Christmas!

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