'Tis the Season

‘Tis the Season

Surprisingly, the fourth Thursday of November was not the last Thursday of November this year. You may not fully appreciate the significance of this fact – let me explain.

At first I was caught unawares, realizing that I had not yet planned the Menu with my Mom. I had to scramble to get ready with the mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, and six pie fillings, shopping the night before the actual Turkey Day. I wondered why I was so unprepared; looking to my calendar to find out that the actual date was a full week before the usual time. I thought about complaining, but quickly realized that the quickstep to finish my part of the Thanksgiving Dinner was small potatoes compared to the benefits at hand.

Therefore, I would like to thank the powers that be for making Thanksgiving a week early so that we could have seven extra days for our Christmas decorations to be up.

Some of you may not be as old fashioned as I am, you may have your Christmas baubles out well before Thanksgiving, but I am adamantly traditional about this! Christmas doesn’t start until Thanksgiving dinner is wrapped up and put away. Once the turkey is put to bed, the colors in our house change from the vibrant orange, yellow, and brown of fall leaves to the rich red and green of holly and pine.

Probably many of you have the same tradition. There’s just one little hiccup between Thanksgiving and Christmas decorating. The chaotic madness of Black Friday. I doubt any but the extremely gifted could have Thanksgiving packed away and Christmas décor up before the stores open at midnight. Even if you went out first thing in the morning, that still doesn’t give you much time to do a really good decorating job.

I know this from personal experience. I tried a couple of years in a row to go out Black Friday shopping, waking myself at 3:00 AM, driving around in the cold dark morning, looking for parking. If you think about it, it’s an extremely risky thing to do – putting yourself out on the road with sleep deprived people who have turkey residue in their systems. Throw in the mix of only five or six really good parking spots to fight over – it’s a wonder the government hasn’t banned it for our own safety!

Once I got home bleary-eyed, but elated from at least one good deal, I would enthusiastically welcome in the Christmas season by immediately taking down all of my fall decorations and putting them away. I got the Christmas things out, carols blaring in the background to keep my spirits up, and began setting out my knick-knacky treasures. About half way through the morning, I would find myself suddenly out of steam. I curled up on the couch next to a bag of prickly garland and pillowed my head on the Christmas tree skirt. I can’t be sure if visions of sugar-plums danced through my head or not, all I really know is that I woke up with a major case of holiday regret.

“What have I gotten myself into?” I wondered as I stared at the boxes spilling gingerbread men, snow men, wise men, ornaments, poinsettias, and angels all over the floor. “It seemed like such a good idea at the time.” I can’t believe I attempted such a monumental task with only three and a half hours of sleep under my belt.

 It took me a full week to get the house put to rights, my husband lamented about the lack of restfulness. He complained about having to shove a pile of stockings and a box of glass balls out of the way in order to find a small place to rest his tired bones. I sympathized, but I had no power to go any faster, it’s a creative process and I can’t rush it.

This year, thanks to a sinus infection, I decided not to go out for Black Friday. My husband and son went out at midnight, I stayed home. I slept in until 7:00 and felt bright eyed and bushy-tailed. I was so proud of myself! I had a good chance of not fizzling out this year, having forgone the impulse to torture myself in the dark on a cold search for good deals.

I had to make a quick deposit at the bank that morning. On my way there, around ten, I passed by a local craft store. I noticed there were some empty parking spots closer to the front. I actually considered stopping in after I was done with my banking. I surmised the early crowd must have come and gone by now. As I came to the end of the row, about to turn left, I was nearly hit by a crazed woman driving a mini-van, spinning her steering wheel in order to miss me, all the while clenching a page of coupons in her teeth. A sense of foreboding filled me.

Once finished with the drive-thru teller, I turned back into the craft store parking lot, only to find that every space was filled, even all the way out in the boonie area! Apparently that crazy coupon woman had brought back the hordes with her. I left, shaking my head with relief that I had narrowly escaped standing in a three hour line. To be honest, I tried out a local department store as well. Once again, the crowded conditions of the parking lot sent me on my way. Just as well, I had a date with my Christmas decorations. This year, I didn’t have the excuse of being half-dead from lack of sleep.

In record time I had the Thanksgiving stuff carted out into the garage and my red and green Christmas totes dragged in. I enthusiastically cracked them open and began a trip down memory lane. Every year it’s the same; all the home-made ornaments have a special story. Even the store bought ornaments have story. Usually it’s about me having purchased it for 75% off in the after Christmas sale, but a story nonetheless.

The kids came in to “help”. They pulled things out willy-nilly, scattering them all through the house. I sat down for a minute to try and get inspiration. “How will I place things this time?” Though I have the same decorations, I try to mix it up by arranging them differently each year. I have so many things; I have to pick and choose carefully. I try to come up with a theme and work around that.

I come to the point where I realize I can do nothing else until I hang 80 feet of garland around the top of my living and dining room. That means I must call my Dad to bring over his swing-arm stapler. That will take some time- a couple of hours at least. I sit down for a lunch break. I feel tired, that bag of garland looks inviting. I rest my head for a moment.

Several days later my husband asks me when do I think I will have things put away so we can use two of the couches and the dining room table again? I remind him that the creative process cannot be rushed. It has to happen naturally.

I guess my creative process just takes a week – no matter if I've had enough sleep or not. It's just the way it is. So, that is the reason why I’m grateful for the extra week this year. Thanks to the calendar, I will have still a full three and a half weeks to enjoy Christmas even after the empty boxes go back to the garage. Ah well, every family has their traditions, right? It is the Season, after all!

(C) 2012 Amy Bambilla. All Rights Reserved.