Listening for Those Trucks

For the most part, the shopping is done. I still have a few things yet to be delivered, wrapped up, and, in some cases, mailed out again. I tried shipping things directly, but some things couldn't be gift-wrapped or the additional cost of gift-wrapping plus sending to separate addresses was just too much. So, I thrill now to the sound of a big truck in my neighborhood. I know their routes, so I can usually tell by what street they're on and what direction they're going whether or not they will come down my street or not. Tomorrow I have all day during school planned to watch Christmas movies and get everything done that I possibly can. It will be very fun and festive, at least in my mind's eye. I'm actually not stressing that my Christmas cards have not been delivered yet, and am bravely facing the fact that said cards will likely arrive at their various destinations after Christmas. My resolve to stay in the joy of the season is sticking and I'm determined to enjoy the process.

In other news, Evan is feeling better and is going to try wrestling at tomorrow's meet. Today the doctor pronounced him free of strep or other bacterial infections, so now we wait for his body to do the work of healing. In addition to listening for delivery trucks, I'm counting down the days till my kids get home and praying for them to do well on their finals.  I'm in the home stretch of actually finishing a book in one read rather than giving up halfway as has happened with the last three or four books I've tried to read. I feel good about that.  I talked to my sister today and it is starting to feel real that we'll have family in the house for the holiday. We got all the sleeping arrangements figured out and I can't wait for them to get here. Another sister may come for a visit after Christmas, which would just be the icing on the cake.

I'm starting to feel that very particular sense of anticipation mixed with busyness mixed with excitement that makes this season feel different from other times of the year. Time and space seem to compress and the familiarity of tradition keeps me centered in the rush of this year's list. I like that feeling. I like it when I catch myself humming to the Christmas carols or just stopping to look at the lights of the tree. I'm not even sure what I'm feeling at those moments-memories? security? satisfaction? Maybe a combination of all of those and more.

So c'mon UPS and Fedex and my own good old postman that I've had for 15 years, bring that goodness to my door so I can wrap it up and share the love.