Thursday, December 26, 2013

GIVING GIFTS



christmas is such a magical time of year.
i love the music.
i love the lights.
i love the decorations.
i love the traditions...
and as much fun as it is to receive
a desired gift
or a special surprise...
sometimes
the greatest is the one that you GIVE
and not just any kind of GIVE
but the GIVE you do with thought and heart.
this year
christmas magic came
in GIVING a GIFT
to 
bryan and helena.

these two individuals
are model parents
spiritual giants
well read in the classics
love the beauty of a garden
gourmet meals
and baking bread...
all of which i know nothing about.

as i ventured out in search of a particular GIFT,
nothing particular was left for the taking.
in my peripheal vision,
i saw the ol' dicken's classic
"scrooge"
i know bryan loves dicken's
and i was 100 % positive
he had this tale in his collection...
but my version
of
christmases past present future
was yet to be written.
and so this little gift unfolded...

i printed out famous quotes and linked them
together to form a chain
that shackle scrooge
 if unchanged
CHRISTMAS PACKAGE PAST
CHRISTMAS PACKAGE PRESENT
(a dialogue between rick and myself
was printed and pasted to the gift
in hopes of creating a feeling of being present
in delivering their gift)


CHRISTMAS PACKAGE FUTURE
 
bryan called
and we laughed.


Wednesday, December 25, 2013

CHRISTMAS EVE

so not the CHRISTMAS EVE
i envisioned.
i am a product of a splendid
CHRISTMAS EVE tradition...
a progressive dinner
beginning at the home of my upbringing.
an evening so memorable,
that many a personal essays have been written on the event.
a night so exciting that it almost
overshadowed
christmas day.

i have always hoped that i would pattern
(i am 100% sure that rick would hope so too)
my CHRISTMAS EVE
after that of my childhood.
i have the christmas dishes.
i have the recipes.
i even have an adorable apron with frills.
i have a love for celebrating the most magical event
in all the history of mankind...
the birth of my savior.
so what happened?
i happened.
i am just not the domestic goddesss i think i am.
i also learned a few things:
i do not recommend waiting until
 CHRISTMAS EVE
to do christmas shopping.
it may mean that your guests arrive before you do.
they did.

i do recommend proper planning
and then adhering to the plan.
as i reflect,
food items had been purchased previous to  
CHRISTMAS EVE.
serving pieces were ready and placed jus so.
mother knew just what needed to be marinated
and for how long...
which dish was placed in the oven
in order to be warm and on the table before
the welcome and blessing on the spread of
delicious, lip smacking
hors d' oeurves.
it was just as much science
orchestrated with a bit of magic
as it was an act of cooking prowess.

our
appetizers
became
aftertizers...
"pick it up on the way home
live by default" type of items.

i delivered gifts while rick unloaded bags of groceries.

my one true success
took affect before sleeping eyes
opened...
the table was beautiful


true to form,
 mom and dad
made me feel like what transpired
 was an  A+++ 
top of the notch job,
but i knew better.
did i need to pull out the old family photos
from scrapbook's past?
had they forgotten what it was supposed to look like?

there was no christmas story from the bible,
yet i remembered the reason for the season
in a childlike nativity
that featured the prominent characters
and noah's handmade woodbox
for a stable.
there was no
 "it's a wonderful life..."
movie with tinkling of bells
and angels receiving wings.
rather, noah given charge
 selected
"the lone ranger"

the only thing resembling 
CHRISTMAS EVE pasts
was a new pair of pj's for noah.
 though his grandparents
were CRIMSON RED 
UNIVERSITY OF UTAH graduates,
they rejoiced at noah
posing
in BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY
 COUGAR BLUE

it was a humble, simple CHRISTMAS EVE
with the very people i love the most
and maybe,
  just maybe,
 it played out
according to how someone else 
envisioned it to be...

Monday, December 23, 2013

MERRY CHRISTMAS PRIMARY CHILDREN

december lessons
focused on the savior
 we remembered him
and celebrated his birth.


the first sunday,
each child received a CANDY CANE
i held it up as the letter "J"
"J" is for jesus,
a name
i will hold dear.
jesus is the author of"JOY".
 in the word "JOY"
"J" stands for jesus
"O" for others
"Y" then yourself.
true "JOY"
is the outcome
as we put jesus first
and others before ourselves.
of course,
we turned the letter "J"
into the shepherd's staff.
jesus is our shepherd.
he will guide us back to  our
father in heaven
and gather us when we our lost.
the second sunday,
each child was given
JINGLE BELLS
and 
chocolate bells with this reminder:
that the shepherd knows his sheep
each, with a bell placed around the neck
is safely guided back to the fold
our shepherd,
the savior,
knows us by name.

the third sunday,
i brought CUPCAKES and a nice table cloth.
we had a birthday party for jesus.

we made presents for him
and sang happy birthday to him.
we looked at pictures and talked about
the life and miracles of
this special person in our life.
Click to play this Smilebox slideshow
Create your own slideshow - Powered by Smilebox
Make a free slideshow

Sunday, December 15, 2013

OH CHRISTMAS TREE

oh christmas tree
OH CHRISTMAS TREE
where are you?

with thanksgiving at the tail end of november,
christmas happened upon us before
i could wrap my mind around it.

we talked of selecting a tree numerous times...
finally,
december 14, 2013
we forced ourselves to brave the bitter temperatures.
it would be rushed
as we hoped to make
the
country christmas that the ward was hosting.
Home Teach and Visit Teach Friends 
Primary Friends

three OH CHRISTMAS TREE lots later...
(they were sparse and picked over)
one had picked us.

in my home and childhood,
i remember my dad putting lights upon the tree,
a task i have never fancied !

rick lounged on the couch
"this is christmas magic right here"
of course it is magic for him
he is not tangled in pine needles and sap
the lights had almost reached completion,
when the top half of the lights
darkened
"UUUUgggghhhhh"

i start again.
alas
a beautiful OH CHRISTMAS TREE to behold.
tradition: rick places grandma t's picture on the branch
noah places the star atop the tree
ta duh !!!
ta dupe.

i will pick up a new star on monday.

oh christmas tree
OH CHRISTMAS TREE




Saturday, December 14, 2013

BE STILL

i had placed a few decorations upon the mantle,
but we had yet to purchase a 
christmas tree.
noah handcrafted the wood box at scouts...perfect for a stable
christmas? 
really? christmas?
for some reason it came
awfully quick this year
i felt unprepared and frazzled.

my son deserved
a happy christmas
with the same kind of fun
and holiday cheer
i experienced as a child.
noah made the cheerful santa at school
"the gingerbread house !
we will decorate a gingerbread house."

as i was returning home,
my mind raced with all
i had hoped would be done...

in my search for jesus,
i found myself thinking of a christmas gift past
the painting of jesus
my husband surprised me with
BE STILL

i opened the door
there was a scent of soapy clean
and the sound of a newly purchased
carpet cleaner.
stains cleaned.
cushions and pillows in the process.
i could scarcely believe...
elves in the workshop??? 


noah and i decorated 
the gingerbread house.
excitement crept in little by little
as i passed by the front room
i noticed a beautiful painting upon my wall...
how could he possibly know my thoughts?
that was the first gift of christmas
i let out a scream
of delight.

it feels like home.
that night,
i felt to 
BE STILL
and be in the moment.








CHRISTMAS PARTY AT ELA

the theme
ELA'S GOT TALENT

i typically always plan on attending
i put together a 
white elephant
the day arrives
a grab a quick bite
and then as the 
white elephant exchange draws nigh
i bail

like noah
i have a bit of stage fright
the pressure
of how my
white elephant
will be received is more than
i can bear
and the topper
is how my reaction to 
another's
white elephant will be
okay, i get it
i am the party
WIMP

i responded to mr. g.
but mrs. price
got the best of me
and roped me into a performance
with other women 
the jr. high
rehearsals took place
in the theare room
at the noontime hour
with the candlestick
(TTBF)
actually, i was
"CLUE"less

our number
abba's
mamma mia
in scuba gear
i was already theatrically
challenged...and
now
put me in flippers

my nerves were warranted
as i had my
own personal
wardrobe malfunction
as i pulled down one
too many layers while changing

i have to admit
i had a grand time
and so,
i will be back next year

i made a little
thank you note
to present with
mr. g.'s gift
T’was the week before 
a long Christmas Break
every teacher was teaching
for goodness sake
All the students gone cra-cra
in every way-way
so Mr. Gla-Gla
thought an afternoon of play-play
would be okay-k
at ELA-A

So the staff were gathered
to the library with care
in hopes that ELA talent
soon would be there
Water and cokes 
on the table display
while delicious warm food
was on it’s way
When what should appear
to all of our eyes
a panel of judges 
to decide on first prize
One being Santa 
in his red and his white (ment)
not a soul could control
all of this excitement

Performers with talents 
one by one
shared in their gift
some serious, some fun
The judges perplexed 
oh mia mya
(or...wait a minute was it...
momma mia?”)

HO! HO! HO!

Vocals and instruments
Snowflakes and Kittens
and a trick from Santa
the guy with the mittens

Then there was one
no words no clatter
no one moved...
nothing the matter
For dear, Cyndie Lou 
so sweetly she sang
who knew? not I
but the melody rang  

The time had now come 
to decide on the prize
clearly “THE VOICE” that
brought tears to our eyes

We sprang from our seats
with a roaring applause
as Cyndie Lou 
got the jewel board from...
ol’ Santa  Claus
Then to us all
it came in to focus
the Givers of gifts
one real, one Hocus Pocus

The one in the red
and fur of white,
the other that made us
all Merry and Bright
That would be you
Mr. Glathar

Thank you for a wonderful 2013
and an afternoon of FUN!!!
You really are amazing








Thursday, December 12, 2013

FINDING JESUS


mark mabry artwork


after my experience trying to find
anything resembling JESUS,
i thought i would keep my eyes peeled
to see if JESUS  truly was central
to the celebration of his birth.

i miss the days
when a large NATIVITY
was in the center of town
at the public library...
when bulletin boards
and CHRISTMAS
 programs at school
allowed songs like
“silent night”
“away in a manger”
and “joy to the world”
i miss the carefree days
of being able to
say MERRY CHRISTMAS
without the fear and worry of someone
being offended.

i heard that one school
was asked to cancel 
the “angel tree”
and “sub for santa”
because it was an
act of christianity.
too bad for the family
that may have been filled with joy
and hope
the belief in miracles
at a time of their misfortune.
too bad for the givers
that may have learned gratitiude
as well as 
been filled with the 
unmeasured happiness
and love
that comes as the rich rewards of 
true charity.


really.
being kind
compassionate
forgiving
loving
are all acts of christianity.
should we eliminate those traits
and qualities?

mmm.
where andwhat would that leave 
for humanity?
in complete and utter evil circumstances.
on friday the 13th day of december
another school shooting.

then
while watching 
FOX
i saw this
segment of a billboard
from atheist.org
which cut to my core

i need CHRIST
at 
CHRISTMAS
and every single moment
in between
and i am
SOMEBODY






i am not jewish,
but i do not mind
wishing 
HAPPY HANUKKAH
learning about the culture
and festive traditions
marveling in the menorah
singing “how many nights”
and playing dreidel.

in one of the language arts classes
students had the joys
of learning about 
festivities,
customs,
traditions,
of our brothers
and sisters
around the world.

we wouldn't dream of trying
to rewrite or cancel
the celebrations
dear to their
hearts

so please
i beg,
stop attacking
CHRISTmas.
without
CHRIST in my
CHRISTMAS,
it would be just plain old
MAS
and that would be
just plain old dumb
and 
plain old boring.

i do not expect
everyone to celebrate and believe
as i believe
i just wish that others
would be courteous enough
and allow me to acknowledge 
december 25, 
 CHRISTMAS on my calendar
and not just a winter holiday...
it is more 
oh so much more

it is CHRISTMAS
it is a celebration of JESUS Birth
i will rejoice and pay homage to Him
and i will declare
MERRY CHRISTMAS