Just between y’all and me

Well, now, I reckon the year has just about run out of road. The calendar has flipped its last page, the fire in the stove is crackling a low, contented tune, and the world outside has that hushed, muffled-under-a-blanket sort of feel that only comes around at this time of year.

It’s a funny thing, Christmas. It’s a day that smells like pine needles and my red velvet cake, a smell which, I am convinced, is the very scent of memory itself. It’s a day when the usual racket of life – the hurrying, the worrying, the endless list of things that just have to be done – finally decides to take a nap.

And, these days, I find myself thinking a lot about y’all. My kin, by blood and by choice. The folks who stop by this little corner of the world to read my poor ramblings.

I reckon we’re all just a bit like the presents under the tree. We come in all sorts of wrapping paper; some fancy and some plain, like brown paper. We’ve got our dings and our scuffs from the year gone by. We’ve been rattled around a bit, set on high shelves, and occasionally forgotten in the back of the closet. But inside, that’s where the good stuff is. The hope, the stubbornness, the quiet joy of a good cuppa coffee on a cold morning. That’s the gift we carry, every single day.

So, my Christmas wish for you ain’t for fancy things or a sudden windfall that would only cause more trouble than it’s worth. It’s simpler than that.

I wish you a fire that throws a good, steady heat. I wish you a chair that fits your back just right. I wish you someone to share a silence with that’s more comfortable than any conversation. I wish you a belly laugh that starts deep down and surprises you with its strength. And I wish you the grace to forgive the fool you were last Tuesday, and the wisdom to know you’ll probably be a fool again next week, and that’s alright.

Life is mostly just patching up holes and trying to keep the rain out. But today, just for a little while, the roof seems sound. The wind’s quiet. And the company is the best in the world.

So, here’s to you, you magnificent, complicated, and thoroughly lovable bunch. Merry Christmas. May your coffee be hot, your burdens be light, and your heart be full of the good stuff.

Warmly,

Ol’ Big Jim