CHRISTMAS 2012

I’ve always been aware that many people struggle with the holidays. I always loved this time of year myself, always!, and have tried to help as many people as I can enjoy them, too. But, I’ve also empathized with the people who have bah-humbugged them.

My mother loved the Peanuts Christmas special more than anything, so I figured we'd all love to see the gang happy here.

Now, I’m in the horrible position of still being attached to the lights of Christmas, but, having lost my mother on the very day last year, hating it at the same time. I can’t imagine having an easy time of it ever again. Every time I start to feel those warm holiday feelings, the flame goes instantly out as I recall every detail of that worst day of my life.

So, now that I’ve sufficiently brought the room down in a big way, I’ll try to bring it back up a bit. I just wanted to let those people who feel pain at this time of year know that they’re not alone, and we’ll all get through it. I plan to just hibernate tomorrow and consider it as just a desperately needed day of rest. No tree, no gifts, none of the usual pomp and circumstance.

So, whether you’re joining me in low-keying it, or going whole hog on the Santa stuff, I wish you all as wonderful a holiday as you can possibly have. And enjoy it a little for my old self, too.