Five days ago, Thanksgiving dinner graced my dining room table. Tonight, it was covered with Christmas wrapping paper, scissors, tape, and labels. It's that time of year again--disappearing calendar time.
How, exactly, does this happen every year? You barely get the cranberries into Tupperware before you're off to the mall for the early bird breadmaker sale. The ensuing days of the year's last month are packed ever more full of errands, chores, activities and events. Then suddenly, it's Christmas. Then, almost immediately, New Year. And then, you're a year older.
'Tis the season to stop and reflect for just a moment, before it's gone and we're into the January doldrums again. Think about how lucky we are in this country, how very fortunate. Remember to enjoy the season before it's over.
And remember, too, as House Speaker Dennis Hastert so wisely affirms: "If it's a spruce tree adorned with 10,000 lights and 5,000 ornaments displayed on the Capitol grounds in December, it's a Christmas tree and that's what it should be called."
Ho-ho-ho! You've got to love it.
