If your experience is anything like mine, no matter how hard you try to make lasting hallmarky memories for your children, they tend to remember your less than perfect moments more vividly and frequently. I can’t count the times my son has brought up the time I accidentally hit a pedestrian (well…obviously it was an accident and I didn’t hit him very hard and I gave the guy a ride…) but never mentions the collaborative centerpieces we made for Thanksgiving that one year, or any cultural or community event we’ve attended ever. Who knows how they’ll recollect they’re childhood – happy, horrible or just an inaccessible blur. Only time will tell. And in the mean time I’ll approach this holiday season with a fresh list of memorable monkeyshine to inflict upon them.
We used to have a class here at Living Light called New Holiday Traditions, and although I would argue that traditions can’t, by definition, be new, I know what they mean. It was made up of a fantastic collection of recipes replacing holiday favorites with raw creations. We employees were invited to a holiday potluck after this class last year and the food was perfectly delicious. (Even my kids liked it, although they probably don’t remember….). Anyhow – we no longer offer this class, but don’t despair – you can own all the new holiday traditions you’ll ever need with our new DVD – The Best of New Holiday Traditions! It’s packed with demos by all your Living Light favorites and is guaranteed to create lasting holiday memories.
[…] Pre-holiday anxiety can set in pretty quickly, so it’s important to do everything you can to stay focused on the joy. Just because I went into the post office today to ship a birthday package to my son in Canada, and there was a long line already, doesn’t mean that I have to get all scrooged up about it. And just because I filled out the longish customs form and was told I had to go back over everything I’d written so that it would show up on the last page of the quadruplicate doesn’t mean that I should feel any anxiety (especially with a long line forming behind me already). It must mean that now is the time to breathe, relax, and enjoy. Hey, Fort Bragg doesn’t even have any traffic to speak of. No malls, no big box stores, no vast parking lots where you can’t find your car. We do have a tree lighting ceremony, a festival of lights in the Botanical Gardens, several craft and art fairs, and a performance of the Nutcracker every year at the groovy refurbished Cotton Auditorium. […]
Thanks Mary. For your wit, for your insight, for the way you can bend a phrase, and for your authenticity.
And I love reading about what’s happening at Living Light.
You’re welcome – and thank you for your faithful readership and delightful comments. I really appreciate the feedback and encouragement.
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