The day after…

One of my favorite days on the calendar is the day after Christmas. It feels like an exhale. After weeks of busyness and stress leading up to the holiday, the day after allows for a calm contentment. When the kids were small, it was a day filled with the new wonders they found under the tree. Today, it feels like a chance to catch my breath, to reflect, to give thanks.
I will use the next few days to methodically (compulsively) review the past year, identifying lessons, moments of triumph, and seasons of growth. This process will help me put the old year to bed on New Years Eve and plunge into the 2016 with a plan, new goals, and a renewed sense of hope. But today, I will rest. I will turn the lights on the tree, listen to Christmas music, eat a few more cookies, and enjoy the afterglow of this beautiful holiday.
Its amazing to me how many Christmases are behind us. This year we added a new stocking to our rail. The last few Christmases have challenged us to find new ways to be family, new ways to celebrate, and new ways to be together and whole. We no longer live under the same roof. Life is moving forward, and things are changing. We are still working at it, but it feels like we navigated some rough water and have come out on the other side, changed, but whole.
I never imagined, when my cherub faced children were sneaking down the stairs to get a glimpse of Santa’s bounty, what life would like like when they were grown. It felt like it would always be that way. They would always be little… but we blinked, and they are adults. So, today I want to just take a moment an be grateful for what is true. They are amazing humans. They couldn’t be more different or complex. When they were little, they said there was a nice one, a good one, and a smart one. Now it’s clear they are all nice, good, and smart, each in their own way. They are also flawed, imperfect people figuring it out as they go. I like that about them.
In our family, it doesn’t take long to learn what we think… we always have an opinion and we are usually more than willing to share it. When we gather it is loud, occasionally inappropriate, and always entertaining. We disagree about lots, we tease mercilessly, we fight and fuss on occasion, but we love each other. It is enough. In fact, it is everything.