Happy Holidays
This is the season of joy and remembrance for most major religions. There is something about the darkest heart of winter that really draws us together and reminds us of the importance of being part of community and a family. Now, being raised in a fairly secular household, Christmas was always represented by the tree, santa, and gingerbread men. Christmas was a time to show your family and friends your appreciation of them by giving them gifts. To me, gift giving has always been about honoring the person you’re giving the gift to. Giving gifts is about showing that you care about them.
This year, I am alone for Christmas.
I’m not dreading the day spent alone, and I’m not filled with sadness that my family has spread itself out across the country. A few years ago, my parents moved from here in Kansas City, to Helena, Montana, and since then, us kids have pretty much stopped gathering together for the holidays. Of course, my two older siblings both have families of their own to take care of. My younger brother is too busy being a rock star to worry about things like holidays (although he does always at least text me.)
It feels like I should be upset. I feel like the fact that I’m not bothered by being alone on Christmas means something is brewing deeper inside my mind than I am aware of. Maybe it hasn’t hit me yet. The truth is, this year is the first time that I will spend Christmas completely alone in person, but it also feels like the first time in a long while that I won’t be alone in spirit.
The Shiny Lining of every cloud
Everyone can use some time alone. I haven’t actually had any alone time in a while, and whereas I don’t think I’ve been smothered by my friends (as I have in the past), I haven’t really had a few days to just sit and reflect on who I am. There are a lot of changes going on in my life right now, and I think I could use the time to analyze myself. Plus, if all goes well, I will have a brand new [amazon_link id=”B002NEGTOC” target=”_blank” ]Archos 5 Tablet [/amazon_link]to hack into this weekend.
As an avid Linux fanatic, I love nothing more than having some time to myself to hack into some code and really get a new device running the way I want it to run.
Safety and Happiness
While I am tucked away, quietly in my warm home eating frozen pizza and ham, a lot of people will be out on the roads. There is a pretty high chance of some pretty nasty weather this weekend just about anywhere you’re at in the northern hemisphere. Chances are there will be some real stupid people out there on the roads. So, be careful and safe this weekend.
And those of you reading this from Australia, look, I know its the heart of summer down there, but I bet there will still be some drunks on the road. So, avoid those guys, and I guess you don’t have to worry too much about black ice.