I want to shed some "lyte" on anticipation today. This time of year is when in addition to snowflakes, there is anticipation in the air. You feel it most around kids; they send out rogue waves of it as they contemplate what they want from Santa.
But adults are not immune to the siren song of "I want". We are bombarded with images of shiny new cars wrapped in bows and flashy new big screen tvs. And when most of us are watching every penny, these temptations are akin to Chinese water torture, or to use the millennium term, Guantanamo waterboarding.
We need to rediscover the meaning of the season. And I am not an advocate for putting the "Christ" back in Christmas. People have been celebrating the winter solstice long before Jesus walked the earth. What this time of year is all about is comfort and joy, and when you are stuck in line at Walmart, mentally calculating if you are going to go over your credit card limit with this next purchase, comfort and joy seem a long ways away.
So send a card, a real card with a note and a picture, to a friend you haven't talked to in a while. Call a family member who is notorious for being a hermit. Carol. Bake some cookies and give them to your neighbors. Simple acts of connection that speak to the spirit of the holidays. It's cold out there, meteorologically and metaphorically, we could all use some warmth.
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