WHAT SANTA REALLY THINKS ABOUT AT THE NEW YEAR!

A series of essays....

SANTA AND MRS. CLAUS WELCOMING IN 2020

....as seen through my eyes!

By: Jacqueline E Hughes

The remaining cookie crumbs are being cleaned from the counter that the lovingly chipped, Santa cookie jar has graced for the past several weeks. Small hands that decapitated him each time they desired to reach into his tummy for a sweet treat have left him alone for a little while to play with their new Apple products, board games, and participate in the wonderful adventures that enfold within the  pages of books delightfully opened on Christmas morning! 

The crystal snowflakes arrived about a week late but  continue to cover the ground with a fluffy coating of frozen wonderment that I, personally, could live without. Not because of any Scrooge-like tendencies but, it’s something that I thought I would miss twenty-three years ago but learned to ignore and forget about with the exception of our frequent visits up to Michigan from Florida to be with our adult children and young grandchildren in wintertime. Snow can be so overrated, don’t you think?

Our houseguest of several days, Dan’s youngest brother, Chris, made it back home to Georgia safe and sound, if not a bit late after, finally, leaving Chicago O’Hare International Airport. Snowstorm related, don’t you know...! His micro-visits with family and friends in the Kalamazoo area proved highly successful and we learn, once again, how important personal contact is over exclusive social media usage. 

Chris plucked his smartphone (camera) from his back pocket the other day as four adult, female deer meandered into our backyard at dusk and calmly stood looking at the penned-up humans staring out at them while taking their picture from the kitchen window. We must have looked like the proverbial ‘deer in the headlights’ to them! Not desiring the frosty Rhododendron leaves as much as they thought they would, they moved slowly along and followed one another into our neighbor’s yard and deep into the dark, shadowy spaces beyond. 

We kept up with the daily news throughout the holidays, of course, and were slightly relieved by not having the time to glue ourselves to the various television broadcasts as we normally do in less busy times. It was totally insane knowing that the ‘evil person of corruption’ with ties to unsavory leaders such as Putin, President of Russia, Bashar al-Assad, President of Syria, and Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Prime Minister of Turkey, was playing a round or two of golf when a rocket attack killed an American contractor in Iraq, American airstrikes hit an Iranian-backed Iraqi militia, and Iraqis’ anger turned back on the United States, culminating with a break-in at its embassy compound in Baghdad on New Year’s Eve day. Could Trump be more smug and arrogant as his display of personal gratification implies? As Rachel Maddow often proclaims, “Stick a pin in it.”

                                             

                                                              Contemplative Monk

Things break....we all know this. However, I am learning that the same things can be repaired. We began watching a very calming show on Netflix called The Repair Shop where the mission is to change our attitude of living in a disposable world. A handful of artisans work to repair or repurpose broken items people bring into the shop to be fixed and  rejuvenated. With painstaking precision and attention to detail, heirloom clocks, toys, porcelain pieces, paintings, and wooden furniture are given a new lease on life. How wonderful it would be to combine this way of thinking to broken hearts, lost souls, negative attitudes, and lack of self-confidence; where love is the basis for all things worthwhile saving and can spread out in a multitude of directions touching lives and making them as close to whole as possible. 

With a few luxurious moments to sit and reflect on life after all of the hoopla of Christmas Eve, Santa makes time to brush away cookie crumbs, speculate on the relevance of snow accumulation, wonder about the doldrums associated with air travel by plane instead of sleigh, and enjoy the absolute happiness of being in the company of wildlife within our own, small, fragile existence. Santa knows a lot about this subject. 

Most importantly, Santa knows that when something becomes broken, misused, or aged and withered away by time, there is hope to be found in the changing of the guard, the onset of time renewed and rejuvenated. The brand new year that hovers right around the corner from Christmas can set the tone for the next fifty-one weeks ahead; sharpen the senses and turn a disposable world into one that is savored and cared for like a family heirloom. The sprinkling of time mixed with a dash of common sense, hope, and love has, already, raised doubts about and impeached the character of Donald J. Trump. 

Relish our renewed faith in the power of good, remain strong, and always, with hope channeling our every move, correct what is evil and make life better for us all. Let us proceed with patience and a vision this New Year, remembering to cooperate with others to make it happen. Stick a pin in it....!

WELCOME IN THE BEAUTY OF 2020

Copyright © 2020 by Jacqueline E Hughes

All rights reserved