Christmas will be different this year

Somehow I have acquired an unexpected bag full of Christmas decorations. There is a garland that perfectly fits our side porch, along with a bunch of plastic poinsettias complete with a matching plastic ball of mistletoe, a centerpiece and another piece of garland. All this was in a crinkly plastic bag from Rinks.

Rinks was a precursor to Walmart, only without the groceries. I’m fairly certain that Rinks went out of business decades ago. I checked and Rinks closed in the mid to late 1980’s. That is a long time for decorations to hide in a sack only to reappear during a pandemic.

The newly found garland promptly took the place of the one I usually use as the new one was much softer than my old one. I am still debating what to do with all the poinsettia stuff. Some of it is falling apart and will end up in the trash. 

I have been on an off and on cleaning binge so maybe that is where the unexpected decorations came from. I still don’t remember ever seeing them before.

I really should put away the Halloween witches before I go all out decorating for Christmas. The little witches escaped from their box and are not wanting to go back. Who says inanimate objects don’t have an attitude? Maybe they are responsible for the newly found decorations. Probably not.

My siblings and I have agreed to stop buying presents for each other. Most of what we buy ends up not being used and is a waste of money. None of us has any idea what to purchase for the others. There was a period of several years when my brother, Michael, would get me drinking glasses. My other brother, David, often gets me something to do with gardening. I have received various gardening figures such as angels, giant mushrooms, a plate and saucer attached to a stake, assorted signs, and even plants. The Christmas cactus I received one year is still alive and has bloomed and is now sleepily waiting for spring to arrive.

When my brothers were little, I would get them toy cars and trucks. Once they outgrew that we all bought stuff that elicited a puzzled look. Michael finally stopped buying drinking glasses for me.

The year that Mom died, we had Christmas at Michael’s trailer. I don’t remember the presents but I do remember that I got everybody a small Nerf gun in addition to their regular present. We had a blast shooting at each other. I confirmed the fact that I can’t hit the broad side of a barn or a brother mere inches from me. 

This madness occurred after our annual wrapping paper fight. Mom had started that tradition after her husband died. My nephew, Jadyn, has said that the wrapping paper fight was the best part of Christmas. I confess, it was always the most fun part of the day for me, too. Whenever conversation lagged, somebody would lob a wad of paper at the speaker and we would start all over again.

I am not sure what we are doing this year. Between no presents and assorted virus protocols, this year will be far different than other years. If we are to have anything resembling our annual get-together, I suppose we should bring our own rolls of wrapping paper, a giant bottle of sanitizer and an assortment of face masks. 

At some point, the rest of the household decorations will find their usual places to ride out the holiday and the little witches will be lured back to their box. Somehow we will figure out a way to get together. We don’t see each other as often as we used to. I miss them.