Over the weekend, I spent quite a bit of time in the car on the way to my brother's ice hockey games. The back roads we take to the rink are anything but flat, and the houses along them are not grand and and gated, but rustic and humble. Some were adorned in colored lights, others in white. Some went for the traditional look, with columns wrapped in garland, and red satin bows. And then there were others, with no lights at all - maybe their timer just hadn't come on yet.
Many houses had lights on inside, and beyond those shaded windows, I'd like to think there were families eating dinner, passing around the mashed potatoes and saying a little prayer. I know that is not always the truth - that in some homes there is simply no one to eat with, or even food to have. In my fantasies, everyone has a family as perfect as mine - a family that celebrates Christmas with joy and laughter, and that is grateful for every moment together. It makes me sad to think that some will spend this Christmas alone, without a coat, or without a heart.
In many windows, you could get a glance at a tree, tall and embellished. And maybe there was a Christmas CD in the stereo, filling the house with cheer. Maybe shortbread cookies were coming out of the oven, or a Christmas special was on TV. While leaning my head against the car window, and watching the scenery flick by, I could not be sure of any of these things, but these imaginings passed the time and kept my mind off of other things...
Like the fact that I had to go back to school the next day - back to the tests, the homework, the stress - things that are just so unChristmasey! But then I realized that every other teenager was probably feeling the same way. We would just have to tough it out together.
In the end, it really is "Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas" (Snow, you are welcome to come along any day now!) and although I know the truth about what this holiday might be like for others, I am grateful everyday to come home to a house smelling if homemade treats and a family that is as perfect as can be.
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