Wednesday, December 26, 2012

WOW! ANOTHER CHRISTMAS HAS COME AND GONE!

Christmas Day always seems so anti-climatic. All the weeks since before Thanksgiving have been filled with so much frenetic activity:

BUYING PRESENTS
I'm not usually a buy-ahead kind of customer. Oh, I know what I think I'd like to buy someone, but the fact is, the closer you get to Christmas, the more your loved ones drop hints about what they'd like to have, all triggered by the commercials on TV and in catalogs that they've been watching and reading. It's impossible to keep up, especially for someone like me who just wants to receive things that are useful for my interests — a year's worth of chicken feed, some peat moss for my garden beds, maybe some boots to keep my feet dry and mud-free. I must be getting old . . .

Trying to wait out the crush of shoppers for last-minute deals doesn't always work. Up until just two or three days before Christmas Eve, you patiently wait for prices to go down, hoping to grab that last sweater or toy (or scarf or fondue pot or car mats, ad infinitum) at a fantabulous savings. It really doesn't matter what it is; if you wait just one minute too late, it's gone! So I shop online. I have to say that I really did get some great deals this year, winning several online bids. But the big question still floating in the air is, "Will it get here in time?"

Except for the walking, online shopping is almost as arduous as real-time shopping. I didn't know there was a limit to how many tabs I could have open while comparing prices, shipping & handling costs, colors & sizes available, what organizations support the seller, and merchant rankings, before Internet Explorer crashes!

PLANNING & SHOPPING FOR CHRISTMAS PARTIES
It really doesn't matter whether you're hosting or not. You still have to decide what offering you're going to bring. This entails making your choice(s), shopping for the ingredients that you never seem to have on hand (and you always forget one that sends you back to the store to fight the long lines again, even in the 10-items-or-less lane!).

The only thing that's better when you're the host, is not having to find a way to transport your specialty dish (hot, of course) without burning yourself and/or having it tilt & spill or slosh to one side of the dish, leaving it looking like it was thrown together at the last minute. When that happens, you wind up taking the whole thing back home because no one was quite sure what it was, or perhaps thought it might make their stomachs feel the way it looked. *Sigh*

You usually wind up getting home from work way too late to make what you planned, so you end up throwing on your party clothes and grabbing that extra bag of Doritos and a jar of salsa. Have you ever noticed how many kinds of chips and dips there are at parties? This is much like the fellowship dinners at church - there are always at least six kinds of store-bought chicken, or - as I like to call it - the "gospel bird".

ATTENDING SPECIAL CHURCH SERVICES
Don't get me wrong, I love going to church and I love the folks who attend with me. But during the Christmas season, there's just too many activities to keep up with! While I realize that you don't have to go to every one of them, it still makes me feel somewhat guilty if I don't, especially when the pastor proclaims from the pulpit that the special speakers, the children's cantata, the youth department's presentation, the Christmas Gospel Sing-along, the sportsmen's turkey shoot, the seniors' bus trip to see a theatrical presentation of the Christmas story, the church's catered Christmas dinner are all going to be the most exciting events yet! All this on top of regular attendance, worship practice, baking cookies — I just fold my hands, bow my head, and ask Jesus which ones He would attend.

CHRISTMAS EVE
Now comes the last minute push! The cook has already been in the kitchen most of the day, baking those pies, getting the main course ready and putting together all the ingredients for dressing, fruit salad, vegetable casseroles, etc. Then, you must find room in your frig to hold all these foods-in-readiness, delicately balancing them on top of other bowls, jars, and any other fairly flat service you can find. Pray before openning the frig door!

If you have just one additional person coming to share your Christmas Eve, there's the snacks and finger foods that must be put out, along with punch and/or drinks, your Christmas cookies and breads, and those ever-present chips & dip.

In my house, we always have the neighborhood children over to receive their small gifts. Bobby and I try to make sure that those neighbors' and friends' children with whom we have a relationship learn the rewards for being a good neighbor and that there are people in this world who love them outside of their immediate families.

Cleanup takes place after everyone has left or retired and the table is set for breakfast and dinner the next day.

By now, I need a drink. So an herbal tea like Chamomile is warm and calming to my nerves before heading off to bed.

CHRISTMAS DAY RUSH
After at least 4 hours sleep, I'm up and at 'em, preparing a simple but tasty breakfast with egg souffle (prepared the night before) that I pop into the oven, some turkey bacon, homemade biscuits, juice and coffee or tea.

With the eggs in the oven and a cup of tea or coffee in hand, we hand out the presents, 'oooooooh' and 'ahhhhhhh' with each other, and put the opened gifts back neatly under the tree.

With the Christmas paper, bows, and plastic packages picked up and emptied outside, we all sit down to have our breakfast together.

Breakfast dishes in the whirring and swishing dishwasher, I begin preparing Christmas Dinner.
  • Main course meat into the oven and timer set
  • Prepare & cook the veggies
  • Get out the rolls and let them rise
  • Make the gravy.
  • Mash the potatoes (Where's the butter?).
  • Put the desserts on the sideboard and make sure they all have servers.
  • Whip the heavy cream for topping the desserts.
  • Find serving dishes and spoons for EVERYTHING!
  • Get out the ice
  • Let the meat rest for 10-15 minutes, then carve it onto your special Christmas platter
  • Light the candles on the table, make sure the salt & pepper shakers are there.
  • Call everyone to the table while you rescue your rolls in the oven.
  • Make sure everyone has what they want to drink.
  • SIT DOWN, PRAY, AND SCARF!!!
  • Sit around the table for another 20 minutes, deciding if you want more or want to wait for dessert.
  • Find enough plastic containers for all the leftovers and room for them in the frig.
  • The women clear the table and gather in the kitchen for dish-washing time. I usually get out of this part as I've been cooking for two days. Whew!
RELAX AND FEEL SMUG
Everyone that doesn't live in your house goes home. Now's the time I get to relax and feel smug about a job well done. I don't mean smug in it's truest sense; I just mean that I get to pat myself on the back for accomplishing the task(s) I set out to get done. You know, smug as in a silent "I did it!" While compliments from others are nice, it's just that inner knowing that you've done something for your family, friends and neighbors that hopefully has made them appreciate the season more and will be a lasting memory for years to come.

Now I feel smug with a mug - a huge cup of tea or hot chocolate - while sitting on my couch with all the lights and electronics turned off. That's the best way to enjoy your Christmas tree. No one but you and God. AHHHHHHH!

Anti-climactic? Yeah, but also peaceful! At last, all the hub-bub of the season has finally come to an end. And I'm still sane! Tired, but sane.

Only 10 months before it starts all over again!

No comments:

Post a Comment