As the sun sets on Christmas Eve, and Leslie Odom Jr. sings sweet songs of the season over my kitchen speakers, my family is scattered about, each pursuing their own passions and hobbies.
Zane is in his room playing a game with friends, or maybe watching a ridiculous TikTok that he will insist is hilarious when he shows it to us later on. We will stare blankly at the screen and wonder what in the wide-wide-world-of-sports is funny about a Gen Z person monotonously repeating something another Gen Z person posted first but now they've added to it another layer of… lord help me. I have no idea what is going on in any of these TikToks.
Darla is out for a run because she put a pumpkin pie in the oven and can't bear to stay in the house one more minute where absolutely nothing is going on at all.
Jeff is smoking a cigar and drinking coffee in the garage where he has -- heroically, miraculously-- cleared enough space amid his vintage truck refurbishing project to assemble a new ping pong table for us to "open" tomorrow, Christmas morning. This is his first day off in weeks and after tomorrow he'll be back at it for the foreseeable future. He's earned his cigar and coffee, both.
I'm typing by the Christmas tree, my favorite symbol of the holiday, with two happy, fed dogs closeby. I'm drinking a dirty martini and waiting for the pizza dough to rise for our traditional Christmas Ever pizza dinner. I spent last week in Phoenix in the ER and a subsequent private hospital room with my sister because she was admitted, inexplicably, with dangerously low platelets.
If you've spent any extended time in a hospital, which most people have, you know how draining it is, and how it brings the rest of your life into a hazy kind of focus. I can't stop thinking: Thank goodness we're not in that hospital room anymore! And also, thank you THANK YOU, Jesus, for my healthy children and for my puny arthritis pain and degrading muscle tone.
Spending a week with my beautiful, vibrant sister was so nice. A baccalaureate in fashion design, she wore her own, colorful dresses in lieu of a hospital gown. She was, in hospital parlance, "a walkie talkie," meaning she could walk unassisted and talk coherently. So walk and talk we did! Everyday we circled the healing garden outside. Everyday we ordered whatever delicious food we wanted from nearby restaurants and politely refused the mass produced, heated plates on offer in ward T. Everyday we assembled a puzzle while listening to holiday music on my bluetooth speaker. Every day we got to know each other better, which is the best Christmas present I've gotten in a very long time.
Because of my trip, I now find myself having missed the chance to do many of the holiday chores I usually do. And guess what? No one gives a rat's ass about any of it. I attended 3 parties this weekend with nary a hostess gift, and other than me, no one even noticed. (Or maybe they were deeply offended and I'm off the invite list for next year. I guess we'll see!)
Mikie is doing alright, back at home now. She isn't out of the woods and would deeply appreciate your prayers for a raised platelet count and increased strength and stamina. Our mother flew into Phoenix as well to raise our spirits and bring her magic (sugar cookies, Chex mix, and smiling blue eyes full of love.)
I'm thinking, on this candlelit evening, of all the people I love in this world. Some of you I haven't talked to in a while. Please be safe and, if you can manage it, ignore the political bullshit and that urge we all have to buy things just because people on a screen are doing it.
People need you and your time, not a present.
Much love and Happiness,
Shannon
PS: In lieu of a Go Fund Me to pay her mounting hospital bills, please consider purchasing some of her art quilts, for sale on Etsy.
https://www.etsy.com/shop/mikiemoo/
Merry Christmas to you
Hello Nonnahs! I am so sorry to hear about Mikie. I hope she is better and that the docs figure out the why for her low platelets. I have one of her beautiful quilts hanging in my all purpose room amongst the pix from Egypt. People are amazed at the intricacies of this particular piece. We are okay. But my sister, Judi, passed a way on Thanksgiving morning. A sad day, but I am relieved that she is pain free. Love to you and your family. Buon Natale! Mama Fish