Christmas Reflections

It’s Christmas time! Is it?

I’ve just come home from judging the Christmas light contest, so I guess maybe it is. Is tomorrow really Christmas Eve? The calendar says so. I otherwise never would have known. The land of hype and honey feels very far away.

It’s interesting how much 'place' dictates your thoughts and emotions. A complete paradigm shift happens after a change in location. It’s strange like that. A mere flight can flip your reality, and thus your thoughts, upside down. Typically this is my most favorite time of the year and I am usually everything akin to a jolly little elf during this season. But, right now, Christmas feels a long way away. I have none of the usual emotions. It’s weird and pretty sad for me. I tell myself it should come as no surprise. Nothing here is familiar, nothing is decorated (hardly) and it’s hot. If anything, I learned that I prefer N. Hemisphere Xmas over Southern. This summer time and Santa just don't seem to go together.

I’ve done this before – that is being away from home on the holidays – and every day except today and tomorrow make it feel like it’s always a good decision. But, these days are sad; there is no denying that. For at least 48 hours straight, I wish I were at home. But, the good thing is that I have a happy spirit about it and will certainly make the most of being away and use this time to chalk up yet another experience in my record books. I’m sure this Christmas will end up being full of memories that I’ll never have again. In fact, it already is:

Instead of celebrating a baby Jesus, this community is celebrating the baby donkey that was just born!

I somehow was chosen by the shop owners to be the judge of the Christmas light contest. Little did I know how unforgiving this contest really is. People were driving up to 4 hours to purchase Xmas lights! I thought it was going to be a friendly little game of ‘who can put up the most’ but I learned quickly that some were out to win at all costs. This week I have been ‘invited’ over at night to come and have a look at their houses, having to walk around it, admire all of their hard-work. People would come to the clinic just to make sure that I was coming to see their house. It was all humorous to me, until I realized the 1^st place prize was a couch! 2^nd: two tables. What?! Yeah... pretty hard core. I took the easy way out and got a 7 yr. old to be my ‘official’ judge.

My best present so far has been a pint of $6.50 strawberries from the shop and a can of whipped cream that the doctor I work with gave me. (I ate it all in one night.)

A kid here has never heard of popcorn strands for the Xmas tree (most don’t really do much for Xmas), so we’re making some at my place tonight.


Prue & Heath made me my own Xmas tree potted in red dirt before they left and were even so kind as to leave me stolen toffee and a gift underneath wrapped in absorbent towels from the clinic. I was flattered.
mail plane came and went...no presents for me :(


I hope everyone is surrounded by as much family and love as possible this year. Missing many of you in so many ways.

Merry Christmas to you all. SJ