Every Christmas Eve since I can remember is spent at my Papa and Grandma’s house. I look forward to the night all year. The coziness of being in the house with all the family, eating good food in between games of pool and ping-pong, and just generally being peaceful and relaxed for a couple hours. When the night came to the close as the little ones pretended not to be sleepy, I’d hug everyone and gather my presents before climbing into the backseat of my parents car. Buckled up and refusing to let go of my bag of goodies, I’d lean my head back and watch the night sky, refusing to look away in case Rudolph’s nose appeared among the stars. And it always does.
In recent years, I like to come home and check noradsanta.org while listening to Judy Garland sing “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” a few times before curling up in bed and trying to fall asleep so Santa can stop by. Hell yeah I still wait for Santa. In fact, I’m going to sleep by the tree cuddled up with the pooches so I can try and sneak a peek at him. It’s very fitting that “Meet Me In St. Louis” is on.
If anyone is reading this, I sincerely hope you enjoy yourself for the next two weeks. Leave the tree up an extra week, read a book, watch movies, doodle on a sketch pad; we all deserve some time to forget about the bullshit. Take some days to forget about the economy, don’t fret about unemployment, just enjoy that you are breathing and step outside to look for Rudolph’s nose. And listen to this song. Have yourself a very merry Christmas.




