LET THERE BE LIGHT

December 22, 2022 / middlesisterkathleen / 2 Comments

“In the depths of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer.”–Albert Camus

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Today is Thursday, December 22nd, 2022. 12/22/22. “22” is my lucky number, so this day of the month is always one of my favorite.

Yesterday was December 21st (obviously). Yesterday was also the winter solstice, the day of the year with the least light, and the most dark. After the summer solstice on (about) June 21st, the days leading up to it shorten incrementally every day, and I do not fail to notice the absence of light as the daylight continues to wane.

My spirit wanes with it.

I have a small legion of friends who are acutely attuned to it as well. We celebrate the light, and bemoan the dark. I say “friends” because even though my sisters are my dearest friends, I am not referring to them. Suzanne prefers the dark (weirdo). Gail, in her usual fashion, loves each and every day, no matter the minutes of daylight, the amount of sunshine, the weather conditions, or the reading on her own personal barometer. She knows not a dark day, or a long night–mostly because she hardly sleeps, but I digress.

I bemoan the dark and celebrate the light, and I wish I could celebrate both. But, since I know there is likely a majority of readers who actually (like me) prefer more daylight, I am speaking to you.

This is the season of light. Christmas lights, Hanukkah lights, light from one person to another in the form of holiday cheer, and the reason for Christmas, the Light of the World.

Light keeps hope alive, just like the Star of Bethlehem did over two thousand years ago.

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This morning, on the 22nd, in the frigid minus-30-something wind chill, I opted to stay inside and use the “dreadmill.” My outdoor morning run/walk jumps starts me almost every morning, but it was not meant to be today. I made it for 22 minutes and burned 222 calories. I took those auspicious numbers as a sign to call it good enough.

One month from today, Gail, Suzanne and I, along with our brothers, will gather to celebrate our family Christmas a bit late. We decided the Christmas season was already too busy, so we will celebrate it on what would have been our mother’s 86th birthday–January 22nd. That’s why my lucky number is #22.

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If you know Gail and Suzanne, then you know they both shine their lights in their own unique ways, every day of the year. Gail, in her usual over-the-top but ever-so-awesome way, has once again organized a celebration for her small western Kansas town to heighten their Christmas joy.

Modeled after the “Georgetown Santas” in the small city Suzanne and I live in, she began this tradition three years ago: Gail, along with 14 other residents on those two blocks on a hill, and Elm Street, at the bottom of the hill, become the “Santas of South Sixth,” and the “Elves of Elm Street.” They all prepare treats–candy, snacks, small toys such as Hot Wheels and Play-Doh for the community’s young, as well as adult treats for the young at heart. The city police department works in conjunction with her and the neighbors on those two blocks to direct traffic down their street, letting the cars cruise slowly down the hill, and the “Santas” come to the car to deliver their goodies to everyone. This year, they will again brave the extreme cold, undeterred.

Gail is preparing over 300 of these adult treats—both in small cups and in cubes.

It is a young, but already much-anticipated Christmas tradition in her town. It is yet another way Gail chooses to shine her light. I wish I could go, but family celebrations will be underway at my home, too.

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According to an online almanac, daylight increases by less than a minute every day at this point, but continues to increase as we move toward the summer solstice on Wednesday, June 21st, 2023. I stepped outside in the one degree temps just long enough to take this picture from my porch at 4:45 pm, then again at 5:13 pm. I came in, cozied back up under a blanket as I wrote, and turned on the weather to check the local wind chill. Of course, it was minus 22.

This post is unusual in that it is a Thursday evening, and I generally post on Sunday evenings. This Sunday, however, is Christmas Day. My hope for you is that your light will be shining bright with your family on Christmas and every day, and will continue to shine brighter as the sun shines for just a bit longer every day.

MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM THE SISTERS OF THE SISTER LODE

This picture was taken on the winter solstice from our brother’s front porch three years ago. We gathered at his home to celebrate Christmas a bit early that year.

LET THERE BE LIGHT–AND DARKNESS

December 20, 2020January 11, 2021 / middlesisterkathleen / 6 Comments

Today, December 20th, 2020, marks the second-shortest day of the year. Tomorrow, the winter solstice, will be the turning point and once again, sunshine will begin to prevail–even for just a minute more each day.

I long for longer days. I long for sunlight, and for sunshine whenever it decides to shine. I have lots of windows in my home, and I rarely close any blinds to keep the sun out. I lived in too many basements in college, and I am still making up for lost time.

But without these dark days–the short ones in December, the cloudy ones, and the time I spent living in basements, my appreciation for light wouldn’t be as great. In order to fully bask in the light, one must have spent some time in the dark. Without enduring the dark days devoid of joy that occur in everyone’s lives, we would take the light for granted.

It’s not.

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I didn’t decorate much for Christmas this year. Our nest is empty, there will be no gatherings here–or perhaps not anywhere in my family, and we gave our big Christmas tree to our son when he moved out.

Today, however, I decided to string a small string of battery-powered lights on a miniature tree. I love the light as I stated above, and Christmas lights bring me a special kind of joy.

Perhaps even more so than the standard Christmas lights, these had a mind of their own. I spent half an hour trying to unravel the tangled clot they showed up in, and it seemed just as I got one step ahead of the knots, I took two steps back. This fine wire had a mind of its own, and it nearly drove me out of mine.

After they got tangled up in my shoelace, I lost it. I uttered a few choice obscenities, and proceeded to haphazardly strangle the little tree with them. Having just watched Clark Griswold with his outdoor lights, I realized I must have looked just as funny as he did.

Except that I wasn’t trying to be funny. I’d had enough, and I let my frustration get the best of me. In that process, that surrendering self-control, I let the poor little tree have it, and then I paid the price.

One of my Jim Shore collectible Santas that was right next to the tree on the coffee table took the stray bullet, fell down and broke.

And then I broke.

Gail, Suzanne and I collect these treasures, as well as his other pieces. Dad used to buy them for Mom as gifts, and we have kept up the collecting. This wasn’t one of Mom’s, but it may as well have been, because I felt her there immediately. Both Mom and Dad were there, as a matter of fact.

The cardinal that Santa was holding broke off. And we all know what cardinals signify.

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I don’t need to remind you that this year has been one we all hope to simply survive, and move on to happier times. With a little grace, however, we can use these dark days to remind us what a gift light can be.

My prayer for you is that you have been, and continue to stay well, but we all know that any illness reminds us of the gift that good health is.

My hope for you is that the loved ones you may have lost are still with you for Christmas and every day, alive and well deep within your heart. The cardinal reminds us of that.

Longer days are always coming after the solstice; this is a promise that has never failed. Always.

My Santa can be repaired. I will glue the cardinal back on, and remember every time I look at him that acting out my frustration always gets me nowhere.

And I may even turn on the lights just as they are on my little tree, and remember how important laughter is, especially at myself.

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Gail, Suzanne and I may not be able to get together with our siblings and their families for Christmas like we always do, but no matter what, we are always together in spirit. Mom and Dad are there too, always, with or without a cardinal to remind us. These tough times will pass, and we will never take the gift of family gatherings for granted again, because they’re not.

May your Christmas be a reminder of love and light, no matter how you celebrate it.

Merry Christmas from Gail, Suzanne and Kathleen–the sisters of The Sister Lode. Last year’s Christmas picture will have to do. And–don’t forget to laugh!

THE LONGEST NIGHT OF THE YEAR

December 22, 2019December 22, 2019 / middlesisterkathleen / 5 Comments

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THE LONGEST NIGHT OF THE YEAR

Solstice: noun—either of the two times in the year, the summer solstice and the winter solstice, when the sun reaches its highest or lowest point in the sky at noon, marked by the longest and shortest days.

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I survived the darkness again. Yesterday, December 21^st, 2019, was the shortest day of the year, the longest night of the year. Of course, the day had 24 hours like they all do, but the amount of daylight was the least there will be for another year.

And I didn’t simply survive it. I celebrated it. Along with my siblings and our families, we gathered at the home of our youngest brother and his family to once again welcome another Christmas–complete with a feast of our favorite foods.

We have never missed this holiday together, and I am so grateful.

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Gail, Suzanne and I have our annual Christmas gift exchange. This is the pinnacle of gift-giving and receiving for all three of us, we delight especially in finding the perfects gifts for each other throughout the year, and stashing them away for this special celebration.

Second only to that joy is the receiving end of this exchange. This great care and caution we take in procuring the gifts is always worth the laughter and joy we create when we share our perfect finds.

Gail knew Suzanne would love a gift card from one of her favorite stores–Ross–but she wasn’t able to get there to get her one, so she designed her own.

And speaking of joy, if you look closely at Gail’s gift in hand in this picture, you will see a memento of a place in Wichita that brought us so much joy in our youths. It was an amusement park not far from our grandparent’s house, and when we were treated to a trip there, the joy was unparalleled. It no longer stands; its former vibrance is now replaced by dilapidation and desertion, and this breaks our hearts more than a little. Suzanne, in her thoughtfulness, found these stickers and gave us each one. Sometimes the simplest gifts are the best.

If you, too, have fond memories from this special place from your childhood, give us an Amen when you are done reading.

No joy is more savored and special than once again commemorating the arrival of the best Christmas gift we ever received: our youngest brother Ryan. He arrived on Christmas eve 46 years ago, and we never let it go by unnoticed. Mom and Dad always made sure to observe his birthday despite the holiday celebrations. When Ryan was a kid, sometimes Mom even made a special celebration for him in the summer to draw attention to his birthday away from the holiday.

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I awoke today to bright sunshine and tolerable wind. The temperature hung below the freezing mark for a few hours, but as the day progresses, it is already above 50° on its way to a predicted high of 56°. I’ll take it. I have two loads of laundry hanging outside.

It will only be a gain of about 90 seconds, but there will be more daylight today than yesterday. It will be noticeable mostly in my mind, but that’s where it counts.

I live by sunlight; I am solar-powered. Even though winter officially began yesterday, my mindset is now turned toward spring. I will, however, try to retrain my mind to savor the day, no matter the weather, no matter how much sunshine I may or may not see.

Because I am a trivia nerd, I had to find out difference between solstice and equinox. Yesterday was the winter solstice, the longest night of the year. June 21^st will be the summer solstice, the first day of summer and the shortest night of the year. An equinox is the time or date—twice each year—at which the sun crosses the celestial equator, when day and night are of equal length. In simple terms, this translates into the first day of spring, and the first day of fall.

In my post Something to Look Forward To (January 7th 2018), I wrote that Mom helped us to see the importance of having just that. I am now looking forward to the vernal equinox, just three months away. But I will do my best to savor the winter.

Every day, no matter the weather outside or the conditions deep inside each of us, every moment is a gift. In the winter, I have to dig a little deeper sometimes to find that joy.

I read recently that in ancient times, people grew anxious and depressed when the days grew shorter, thinking perhaps the sun was dying. They worshipped the sun as a god, and without it, they would surely perish. In order to sustain themselves and life in general, they created midwinter rituals to coax back the light, warmth and abundance, which ultimately culminated on the night of the winter solstice. They burned great bonfires complete with music and dancing as their message to the god of the sun that they were doing their part, and needed the sun to keep coming back to do its part. Apparently, it worked.

We no longer have to doubt the return of the sun. For longer than any of us can imagine, it has come up every morning and goes down every night. It’s presence each day becomes shorter, until, once again, it becomes longer.

The wheat lying dormant in our Kansas fields reminds me that winter is a time for slower growth and perhaps more rest. It is a time to quietly prepare for the harvest, a time of renewal and reaping that, as long as I can remember, has always come.

It is a time of reflection, a time to think about the year to come. When the sun comes back in full force, we will be ready to reflect its light and warmth to everyone in our own sphere.

It is a time of restoration, a time to replenish our inner energies that were wisely, but energetically spent when the sun shone bright and warm upon us. If we simply ask, we often are granted this restored energy when the time is right and ripe.

It is a time of rejuvenation, a time to celebrate the gift of youth, even if we are not as young as we’d like to be. If we can still move our bodies and brains, then we are young enough. Looking through the eyes of the young can bring us a fresh, innocent perspective.

It is a time of release, a time to let go of those things we may be holding on to that are not helping us grow. If it doesn’t make you happy, and it doesn’t make anyone else’s life better either, perhaps it’s time to let it go.

Along with the release, letting go of past hurts makes it a time of reconciliation. Even if the other party doesn’t care, or if they thought they never did anything wrong, forgiveness is a healing balm for you. Equally as important is forgiving yourself for your own shortcomings. Dragging those dead carcasses around doesn’t help anyone. Leaving them behind helps everyone—especially you. Christmas is the perfect time.

As the sun set on the shortest day of the year, I was able to capture images of the horizon outside Ryan’s front door. Stepping out and facing west, this panoramic view never ceases to renew me, even when I know the sun will be gone for the longest night of the year. His home is just down the road a few miles from where we grew up, offering an unobstructed view of one of our home state’s most exquisite gifts—the Kansas sunset.

The last picture was taken about 5:40 p.m. I said goodbye and thank you to the sun, knowing the darkness would soon come, but would also be gone in the morning. And, as always, it was.

The promise continues.

I will take some time to renew, so my posts will be hit or miss for a while. Just like the sun, I will be back. I simply need to rest, relax and retool in order to renew.

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Reading is one of my all-time favorite pastimes, especially in the winter. I must share my recommendations with you regarding a great new book by a great author. My sister-in-law Lara recently wrote an amazing Christmas novel. I typically don’t read fiction, but she hooked me with a powerful story as well as amazing local history, as it is set in the area we grew up. Please search this title on Amazon to purchase it as an e-book, or in print as well. You won’t regret it.

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Merry Christmas to you from the sisters of The Sister Lode. We wish you a blessed holiday, as well as a season of rest, relaxation, restoration, rejuvenation, reflection and renewal.

INNER PEACE ON EARTH

December 16, 2018 / middlesisterkathleen / 8 Comments

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INNER PEACE ON EARTH

Tis the season. The Christmas holiday is almost upon us, and most of us—myself included—are doing the dance. Again.

We shop. We decorate. We bake. We send cards (I don’t, sorry). We plan and attend parties. We eat. We hope we bought the right gifts for the right people in the right amounts. We wonder. We worry. We stress.

Then we wonder why we worry and stress. At least, I do.

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I spent the day yesterday with a dear friend. A friend, who, while we are not close in the sense that we see each other often and talk frequently, we remain close. Months can go by, and we are able to—you guessed it—pick up where we left off.

Except this time things have changed since we left off. She is making some major life changes that, she reports, need to be made. I found this out when I called her last week, apropos of nothing. Just to talk.

It had been too long, and it was time to get together. I realized she needed to talk longer than the time we had on the phone, so we made plans for the weekend.

We shopped. We ate. We sipped. We puzzled and colored. We talked. We laughed. We shared. We understood.

Our day started with a one-hour car ride. She talked for most of that. I realized she needed to be heard, and I needed to listen. So, I did.

If life truly is a dance, then she is changing her steps. Changing them in a way she needed to for herself. Except her dance partners now don’t know her new dance, and they don’t like it very well. None of us want to be made fools of on the dance floor of life. So, while her new dance moves feel good to her, they have been met with disdain from the other partners. They don’t know these new moves.

Yet, she keeps dancing the new dance because she knows she cannot go back to the old one. It feels good to her. It feels like she is finally making peace inside herself, even if the dance partners feel like she is creating strife and waging war. She is going with it, and I am cheering her on.

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As I write this Sunday morning, I am mentally cataloguing all the Christmas preparations I need to complete today.

*Wrap gifts.

*Bake cookies.

*Shop online, maybe even go to town to a real store, even though I just did yesterday.

It is causing me a bit of stress. I really just want to take a nap.

It’s not supposed to be this way. It’s supposed to bring me tidings of comfort and joy. It is supposed to help me spread peace on earth. It is supposed to be a Holy Night, and a Holy Day as well. And I just want to rest ye, merry gentle-woman.

So, I am taking a moment to re-align. A few minutes to stop, look and listen, because I feel like I am doing all the talking here.

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In my work as a speech language pathologist–a.k.a. speech therapist, we talk about the two-sided coin of expressive language and receptive language. When a person has a stroke, head injury or some other compromise to the brain, we assess how well they can express themselves mostly through speech, but also by writing and other non-verbal means. We also assess how well they receive information, mostly by listening, but also by reading and looking. They must be able to understand incoming information before they can process it and turn it into outgoing expression.

When most of us speak of communicating, we tend to focus on our expression primarily, and what our listeners understand secondarily. Both sides of the coin must be considered in effective communication.

In this Christmas season of busy-ness, bustle and hustle, perhaps more listening is what we all need. I know I do.

In my grade school Catholic education, I recall learning the four pillars of prayer:

1: Praise God

2: Give thanks.

3: Ask for forgiveness.

4: Ask for help.

This is a well-rounded formula for talking to God; it covers the bases of what we should say in prayer. However, I don’t recall learning that we should also flip the coin over and listen. Perhaps we were taught this, but clearly, I wasn’t listening.

No being—human or divine—enjoys a one-sided conversation. Who wants to listen to someone talk without ever listening? No one I know.

Be still, we are told in the Bible. That’s the tough part. Just sit still and listen. Some people call it meditation, but if that’s too woo-woo for you, then don’t call it that. It is, at its core, simply listening. Downloading information instead of constantly uploading. And there is a lot of good information out there, if we simply listen.

Whomever you pray to, in whatever fashion, whenever you do pray, don’t forget to also listen. That’s where the good stuff is.

Mom wanted us to live our lives by the Prayer of St. Francis. I’ve referred to it many times, and I will continue to refer to it in the future. It is the perfect prescription for a life well-lived.

In order to be this Instrument of Peace that Mom and St. Francis so kindly asked us to be, I have discovered in my efforts that in order to share this peace, one must first possess it. You can’t give away something you don’t have. Further, the best way I have found to possess this peace is to start by simply listening.

Listen to people. We don’t know what their lives look like on the inside, and listening is the only way we can determine how to best understand them so that we can share peace with them. I listened to my friend for the first hour yesterday so that I could formulate a response that would help her the most. She told me her story, and I told her mine. I shared my past struggles that I felt would help her with her current struggles, even though I have never walked in her shoes. I think it made her feel less alone.

Listen to your little voice inside. It is the voice of reason and intuition, and the older we get with more life experiences, it is ultimately the voice of wisdom. Don’t deny it or shush it. It may end up screaming to be heard if you do.

Listen when you pray. Whatever you believe in, in whatever way you choose to believe it, there is always wisdom greater than our own to be downloaded.

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When I got ready to decorate for Christmas last week, I found myself stressed just looking at those totes we brought up from the basement. Four of them. Ugh.

So, I listened. I left a lot of it in the box instead of feeling obligated to put it up. I gave some of it away, too. I rearranged a few things. I cleared the coffee table and put up my favorite Jim Shore pieces, the artist who created the Thanksgiving angel I wrote about two weeks ago.

I have another angel he made with the Nativity scene on it. I put her on Mom and Dad’s table next to the Thanksgiving angel. It brought me peace.

I made it a little simpler this year, and it felt good. I have a little more peace inside to share now. I plan to keep going.

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In Our Favorite Gifts of 2017 (December 31st, 2017), I wrote about the annual hand-made ornament I receive from the young boy I worked with for several years in private speech therapy. Although it had been more than a year since I had worked with him, I received a third one from him last year. Last week, there was another box from him at my door, over two years after we stopped working together. It is the first gift I have received this year, but I’m pretty sure it will be one of the best. He made it himself, from the heart, with appreciation and kindness. I’m sure his kind mother helped him send it. I treasure all four of the ornaments he has now made for me.

In the interest of privacy, his name is covered.

What will be the best gifts you give this year? Will it be the ones you purchased in a frantic mode, spending too much money and wondering if it will be the right one? The right size or color? The one you bought that will bring them joy all year? I doubt it. I think perhaps it will be the ones that aren’t bought.

Perhaps it will be the gift of listening to a friend who needs to be heard. Maybe you will take them to dinner, or better yet, cook for them. Maybe it will be the permission you gave yourself to decorate less, or maybe spend less. Maybe you will give away a possession of personal value to someone you know would enjoy it more than you do. Maybe you will buy yourself something you know you need and/or want, and very likely deserve. Perhaps you will even create some new dance steps for yourself that you know you need to make, even if your dance partner(s) don’t like it. Maybe you will create a home-made gift from the heart like the young boy does for me every year.

Perhaps it will be a gift to yourself of listening when you pray. Maybe you will forgive someone, which turns out to be a buy-one-get-one gift, because in the end, forgiveness benefits you more than them.

Bonus.

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When January comes and the holidays are gone, we should start preparing for the holidays again—in our hearts. Christmas should not be one day in one month within one season. If the true spirit of Christmas is to be celebrated, is should be within us every day of every month of every year. If we can make peace within, we can share it with everyone else all year.

If you are unable to celebrate with your loved ones at Christmas, have a celebration later and call it Christmas. Or whatever you want to call it, as long as you treasure the time spent with them.

There will be no Sister Lode post for the next few weeks. I am taking some time to celebrate with my family, taking some time off work, and probably taking more naps.

I plan to do a lot of listening.

Me, middle sister Kathleen at Christmas, circa 1972. I asked Gail and Suzanne for Christmas pictures, but no luck.

Merry Christmas from Gail, Kathleen and Suzanne, the sisters of The Sister Lode. Peace on Earth, starting with peace within.

I took that nap after lunch, and started on the cookies. I had my Christmas cards stacked on a pile on the counter as I mixed. This one was on the top of the stack. It came from the young boy who makes my annual ornament; every member of his family signed it. Its message is exactly what I am trying to say, too.

THE BROTHER LODE

December 17, 2017 / middlesisterkathleen / 12 Comments

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THE BROTHER LODE

In Suzanne’s last home, she had a family picture hanging in the foyer. “That’s nice.” You may think. “Was it her family, or her siblings and parents?” These are questions you likely have now.

The answer is, neither. It was a family picture of The Brady Bunch.

Suzanne was only three when Ryan was born, so she likely didn’t realize the upset he created for quite some time, but when she did, she wasn’t happy about it.

She loved—and obviously still loves–the Brady Bunch. She probably loved her little brother too, until she realized he ruined our 3/3 boy/girl count, and with his arrival, we were no longer The Brady Bunch.

Ryan arrived in our family on Christmas Eve 1973. In our pre-Christmas caroling spirit, we changed up the words to a then-popular Christmas song, and sang it to Mom: “Christmas is coming, Mom is getting fat.” She took it in stride. By the time it was time to deliver the 7^th—and last–child, she could handle just about anything from us.

Christmas Eve was typically our big celebration; Santa always arrived in his own secretive style. He seemed to know to wait until supper was served, the kitchen was cleaned and we were herded upstairs. Our grandpa lived in town, and he always joined our family for the holiday celebrations. He stayed downstairs and helped Mom and Dad help Santa.

Suzanne will still beg to differ, but Dad was at the hospital with Mom that year on Christmas Eve. Grandpa pulled it off all by himself. She was only three, so I am not trusting her recall of the big event. Mom didn’t drive herself 30 miles there while in labor.

I remember the phonecall around 9:30 from Dad: “It’s a boy!”

Ryan had arrived.

I remember going to visit them on Christmas Day. I was seven, and I wanted a doll called Baby Alive. I didn’t get it, but Mom joked that she did.

I was decked out in another gift from Santa, a long, red and white checked gingham dress. Mom acted so surprised to see me in it, and I felt the glow of a new big sister with the events of the night before. The dress was all I needed to shine. Somewhere is a picture of me in it; when it turns up, I will post it.

I was the fifth of us seven. Two brothers were right ahead of me; born 3 ½ years and 17 months before me, respectively. They were my buddies. Gail was before them and six years older, so not only was she busy with all the work I have already detailed in previous posts, I’m sure I was the annoying little sister.

David and John let me tag along, and subsequently, I became a tomboy. I played in the dirt, made forts in the woods behind our house, climbed trees, rode motorcycles, read Motor Trend magazine and cried when Dad wouldn’t cut my hair after he cut theirs.

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Suzanne, Ryan and me wallowing in a mud bog after a heavy summer rain. I told you I was a tomboy. Looks like I needed a haircut from Dad, or anyone.

David and John could—and often did—bring me to tears as I got older. The memories of their relentless teasing and roughhousing have faded somewhat, and are now replaced by ongoing mutual respect, kindness, love and peace toward each other. Our oldest brother Gary was eight years older than me, so I was likely the perpetually annoying little sister to him. I don’t remember him treating me as such though, and he would likely now disagree.

My memories of Ryan are less painful. Actually, likely because he was seven years younger than me, I think he knew better than to cause me any pain. I don’t even recall any episodes with him, or while observing him with others that would lead me to believe that he had it in him to be anything but laid back, mellow and generally observant. He had six older siblings to watch and learn from, so he likely did just that.

He made his own unique way, did his own thing and gave his own unique contributions to our family.

The gift he continues to give—in my estimation—is his sense of humor. When I asked him as I was writing this, “What was it like to be born on Christmas Eve?” he replied, with no hesitation in his monotone voice that adds to the humor, “I don’t know, I can’t remember.”

Because we had to try to laugh to keep from crying just after Mom and Dad died, we were able to find some humor in the early, most painful days. Gail is Ryan’s godmother, the Catholic role model that not only is expected to be a positive influence as a godparent, but also the person/persons that would be most suited to take the child in the event that child loses their parents. At the wake the night before their funeral, Ryan—at age 35 and seated next to me, leaned in and whispered, “Does this mean I have to go live with Gail?”

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Gail, Suzanne and I are the sisters we are in part because of our brothers. We have our sisterly bonds, but we also have our own unique relationships with each of our four brothers, and that, I know for sure, makes us better sisters to each other.

In recognition of them, and in celebration of Ryan’s arrival on Christmas Eve 44 years ago—even though he doesn’t remember it—I say thank you God for my brothers.

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Next Friday evening, my stepson and his family will join us from Wichita for an early Christmas celebration. Saturday and early Sunday, we will celebrate Christmas with my family and my siblings with their families at Ryan’s house. Nine years ago on that first Christmas without Mom and Dad, we vowed to keep the Christmas holiday together with each other in their honor, and to continue to forge our sibling bonds. Our oldest brother Gary will be with his family in Idaho, but he will be with us in spirit, and by phone too. We will observe and celebrate Ryan’s birthday separate from Christmas, just like Mom and Dad were always sure to do.

The stars of our Christmas Eve 1973 show at Mom and Dad’s 50^th anniversary celebration, October 2007.

Sunday, I will return to my home with my family to celebrate Christmas Eve. There will be no post on this sacred Sunday night.

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We got the tree out of the box and stood it up four days ago. Until today, it sat bare. I won’t deny that I still struggle to get in the spirit when it comes to decorating my home and my tree. My boys were gone all day, and I started without them. The momentum carried me once I got started, but much like my pre-Thanksgiving baking, I had a moment. It still hits me during the holidays, the time of year when their absence is felt most acutely. Just like the Thanksgiving moment, it passed quickly. It passed through me, and it was gone. My family came home and helped, and it was the festive occasion is should be.

I found myself putting up the same decorations in the same places I always do, the same decorations I have put up for years, mostly without thinking much about it. This year, however, I stopped myself when something didn’t feel as good as I thought perhaps it could.

“You always put that Santa right there. It’s where it goes,” I said to myself.

“But I don’t want to put it there this year,” I said back to myself. “I don’t even think I want to put it up at all. I don’t know why, but it makes me blue.”

“Fine, whatever. Suit yourself,” my rational side said to my emotional side.

So I didn’t put it up. And it felt good. I took my own advice from last week, and I changed it up. I put Santa back in the box, and went on with the decorations that sparked joy in me, leaving several others in the box if they didn’t. I changed my decorating traditions, and I like what I see.

Sometimes, suiting yourself is the only way to go. Sometimes, the smallest changes on the outside bring the biggest shifts inside.

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I wish you all the peace of the spirit of Christmas. I wish for this peace every day of the year for you.

For those who are celebrating the first Christmas after the loss of a loved one, my heart breaks for you, but Christmas hope shines on every day of the year to remind us they are still with us. Even if seems the pain won’t lessen, remember you will become stronger with each passing year. We are living proof.

Merry Christmas.

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Happy Birthday Ryan. You are the Christmas gift who keeps giving.

A GRAND OVERNIGHT ISLAND GETAWAY

December 10, 2017December 10, 2017 / middlesisterkathleen / 3 Comments

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A GRAND OVERNIGHT ISLAND GETAWAY

Some traditions are not meant to be carried on forever. If, perhaps, they bring you more sadness than joy, you should consider leaving them behind. Maybe, though, you could change them up a bit, and make something new out of the old, something happy out of the sad; something that brings you joy where it once made you blue.

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Before Suzanne moved to my small city, she was nearly equidistant between here and Grand Island ,Nebraska. Mom and Dad lived in the same small town she did; Gail lived about 2 ½ hours west of them where she still lives.

Shopping trips were split nearly evenly between the two; sometimes Suzanne and Mom would travel here, sometimes they would head north. As I write this, I realize that maybe they went north more than they headed south toward me. Perhaps Grand Island held more shopping charm than my small city, and I understand why. I went along sometimes too. When I could swing it, I would make the trip to their small town, and then we would drive further north from there. Once or twice perhaps, Gail was able to make the even longer trip and join us too. Most of the time, however, it was Suzanne and Mom who took this little trip. After Mom and Dad died, it was too painful for a long time for Suzanne to return, so I didn’t go either.

We liked to take Mom here as a birthday trip. Our last trip together was for her 71^st birthday in January, just six weeks before they died in March.

If you are a Kansas native like we are, or perhaps from another Midwestern state, you already get it. If not, perhaps we need to paint you a picture, an image that will prove to you that Midwest farmer’s daughters know how to create an adventure in what may appear to be land that lacks virtue, plains that may not look so great. There is a reason why we are called the ‘plains,’ but there are many reasons why we are also called “The Great Plains.”

Kansas sunrises and sunsets are unquestionably several of our greatest virtues.

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Suzanne and I took a little trip north Saturday, a trip to commemorate all those trips we used to take with Mom. Gail already had five or six plates scheduled to be spinning in the air for Saturday, so we had to soldier on without her. Suzanne and I went last year to go Christmas shopping, deciding to revive an old tradition. It was time to leave the pain behind, and make new memories.

So we did.

I was inside shopping during the Nebraska sunset Saturday night, but I’m sure it had the potential to rival those in Kansas.

I’ll bet the Nebraska sunrise was beautiful, too, but I after all the fun we had last night, I didn’t get up early enough to see it.

I did get a few shots of the scenery on the way there.

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And just in case you are thinking this Midwest beauty is not so beautiful after all, take a look at the fortune inside my cookie after our Chinese buffet dinner:

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It’s all in how you look at it. The beauty is always there if you choose to see it.

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Last year at this time, Suzanne was preparing to move to my small city. She thought, perhaps, she may never come back here again since she was moving further south.

She was wrong.

Because the route on the way here last year and the way home went through her small town, we also drove by the sign that leads you to the geographic center of the United States. After all those trips driving past it, we decided it was time to actually stop.

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I’m so glad we did, because we didn’t take that route this year.

We have a long tradition of making a grand entrance into Nebraska. Sometimes it’s just a honk and wave, sometimes it’s a stop. One year, we actually came to a complete stop on the highway at the state line–after checking to make sure there was no traffic behind us of course, squealing out and perhaps laying a little rubber as we honked.

This year, we pulled over.

After a full day of shopping–apparently we were really, really good this year, because Santa got us each a few goodies too–we enjoyed dinner. Our dessert tasted exactly like one Mom used to make, so that made it taste even better.

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Then, we checked into our room. This picture of an old tractor almost identical to one our dad had and treasured greeted us at our door.

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That made our hotel room even more perfect.

And, after fully checking them out, we decided–in our very own Goldilocks style, that our beds were just right.

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We tested the beds last year too, and decided we would make it a new tradition.

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The holiday season is upon us. Traditions abound; we know the drills and we carry them out, mostly without thinking much about it. For better or worse, our holiday memories are rooted largely in these traditions.

Traditions anchor us, give us stability and bring back good memories.

Except when they don’t.

Sometimes, traditions have lived beyond their natural lives. Sometimes, they no longer serve us with tidings of comfort and joy. Sometimes, it’s time to think about leaving them behind; changing them up.

Sometimes, like rules, traditions can be bent or even broken without anyone suffering. Sometimes, it won’t hurt a soul to change these traditions, just like it doesn’t hurt to bend the rules. Sometimes, there is more fun to be had when things are changed up.

Sometimes, however, traditions serve as a lifeboat for some people, but not for others involved in the same traditions. Referring once again to the 70’s song, I will reiterate a point that is so often unrecognized: “There ain’t no good guy, there ain’t no bad guy, there’s only you and me and we just disagree.” We all see things differently.

However, if you are the one who wants to rock the boat, just be aware that you may also be the one treading water in the end.

I consider myself a mover and somewhat of a shaker; I don’t hesitate to challenge the status quo if I think there is a better way. Which is why I saved this page from one of my daily calendars the other day:

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Don’t hesitate to consider that there may indeed be another way; perhaps a better way.

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Sometimes, out of necessity, traditions must be changed. The first Christmas after Mom and Dad died, my siblings and I were faced with a decision. Our tradition had been to spend a day at Mom and Dad’s house with them, with all of our families. Now they were gone, and their house was gone. We had to make changes. Now, it was even more important now for us to remain close as siblings, and spending a day together around Christmas was a priority for us.

My house was geographically in the middle for most of us. We had the location, the space and the desire, so my house it was. For the last nine years, we have met with our families for a day of family, festiveness, food and fun. This year, however, we are changing it up.

Our younger brother and his wife will be the new hosts. On December 23rd, we will meet at their house near our family farm and it will be wonderful. His birthday is Christmas Eve, and one tradition we will continue to observe–no matter where we meet–will be to observe his birthday. Mom always made sure to observe it, so we will carry that on.

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My holiday wish for you is to find peace and joy, no matter where or how. If your old traditions bring you that, keep them going. If they bring you more sadness than joy, consider changing them. Start by simply considering it. There may be a better way.

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And next time you find yourself in a hotel room, don’t hesitate to test the beds like we did. The rules were broken, no one was hurt, no harm was done and a new, fun and wonderful tradition was begun.

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