Christmas memories can carry us through

Gracie, our calico cat, murdered a shepherd on Christmas night. I am not sure if it was premeditated or not but after she did it she glared at us as if daring us to correct her. The shepherd is shattered beyond repair. We are currently taking applications for his replacement.
The destruction of the shepherd was the only thing that went wrong this Christmas. I made three different kinds of cookies and my favorite potatoes. One sister-in-law brought individual meatloaves, a big bowl of peas, and some gluten-free, dairy-free cookies. The other sister-in-law brought tiny wienies in sauce.
We all met at my mother’s house. After she fell on our steps last year, I wasn’t about to invite her to come to our house. Mom’s is more convenient and closer to my brother’s homes, anyway.
For once we were the last ones to arrive. This made finding a place to sit a challenge but we managed. Mom looked better than expected. I had received a call a few days earlier from her heart doctor. It seems that her pacemaker had reported a problem and he wanted to see her sometime soon. I turned the information over to my sister-in-law, Apryl, as I am unavailable to provide transportation for awhile.
We opened our presents. My brothers have something new to tease me about. Let’s just say it involved an old photograph and leave it at that. We tossed our wrapping paper across the room. I aimed for my brother and bopped Apryl instead. Once everybody had tired of the annual ritual, we cleaned up the mess.
My daughter called and thanked us for her presents. After we hung up, she called Apryl and they set up a video connection. We all got in on the conversation. I said, “Hi,” to youngest grandson, Nicholas, and instead of replying, he asked, “Where’s Papa?” I guess I know which is of us more important to him.
Even Mom got in on the call. I’m not sure she understood what was going on but it was good that she got to see her granddaughter and great-grandchildren. It had been a long time since she had seen her granddaughter. Other than pictures, she has only seen one of her great-grandchildren, and that was years ago.
It was a very good day. We finally drifted off to our own homes and left Mom to continue watching reruns of old westerns.
Now we are home again. The presents are still gathered in piles. There are tiny pieces of the broken shepherd that I still haven’t found. My new amaryllis is soaking in the bathroom and will be potted later today. I have paperwhites and hyacinth bulbs to play with and a delicious new book to savor. My favorite fudge is in the freezer. Colorful gnomes, and all the rest of the gifts are patiently awaiting their new homes.
But the best present of all was having all of us together for the best holiday of the year. There have been several times this year when I wasn’t sure we would all be alive at Christmas.
This past year had its ups and downs, as every year does. I don’t know if the new year will have more ups or more downs. The pessimist in me votes for tragedy and disaster. The optimist insists that joy will prevail. The realist believes that everything will balance out in the end.
I am hoping that your holidays were happy and that the memories made will help to brighten all the soggy days ahead that the weatherman is predicting.