Jan 2nd 2024. I commuted down to work at a time of day when my brain was probably not 100% awake. As I drove on a near empty freeway, I realized I had been mostly disconnected form any News Sources for nearly 2 weeks. I took a much needed Holiday break; my siblings came to spend the Holidays along with their families. It had been almost 4 years since we had spent it together. The kids are so much older now; it was nice to see them all interact more leisurely and relaxed, more than half of them teenagers and the rest in their early 20s. No more little kids games or having to entertain them any more. It was just pure fun in a mostly adult environment. It was my very first time hosting Christmas, and I was a bit nervous about the food, the space and even about having too awkward moments between cousins that haven’t seen each other in so long. But it all went perfectly, even considering our food warming tray decided to flop and the delicious Scalloped Potatoes my husband made where served a bit cold.

I enjoyed every minute, listening to all the sounds, the laughs, the silly arguments; I truly felt all the love in the room, among a family that was authentically looking forward to this time together. My parents would by so proud and joyful, taking in what has become of us, of their grandkids. Our house was packed, day and night, and I loved seeing life in every room. All the meals we had together, cooking alongside my brother and sister in law, who stayed at our place. Listening to stories from my nephews and nieces. How they are young now adults dealing with “real life” problems, like bad bosses and coworkers; realizing how hard it is to pay the rent and put bread on the table. I can clearly see how they are so appreciative of what we -as parents- do to provide for them.

We took a road trip after Christmas, and headed to San Francisco. Stopping along the way in Solvang, Monterey, Carmel, San Luis Obispo, and even Big Basin on our way back to the the Sequoias, we experienced different climates and activities from Theme Parks ( I skipped that one), Bicycling, a lot of walking and even touring around SF on the second level of an open deck. We got cold rain on separate occasions, but we didn’t let it change our plans. We were prepared with Waterproof jackets and “Ponchos” provided by the bus company. We pedaled through the Embarcadero and Fisherman’s Wharf with the rain hitting our faces while our pants and shoes got pretty wet, just to get dry with the sun minutes later. Crossing the Gold Gate Bridge on a bike was liberating. I highly recommend it.

New Years Eve was spent at the game room / dinning area of our hotel (Wayfarer San Luis Obispo)- along with other guests sitting by the firepits outside in the hotel’s patios. We had our own fun , playing games just to stay away ’til 12. There were huge screens in the area that could have broadcasted New York’s drop of ball, but later I found out that the person in charge of the screens forgot to tune in the right channel, and instead left us with re-runs of Law and Order. Not that we cared- it was just peculiar. 

By Jan 1st at night, everyone was gone and we were back home. A home that sat empty and quiet with floors that showed evidence of the family gathering of the past 10 days. 

As the 50-something old woman that I am, I had missed my bed and my house, so I slept so soundly that night that I had a hard time switching modes on January 2nd to “commuter-work mode”. So I sat in the car half listening to the news, to “catch up”; but it turned out that there was no catching up. The same repetitive depressing stories inundated my ears once again : Irsael, Hamas, China, Taxes, Trump, Biden, shootings, traffic, bla, bla, bla… The only story I was glad to hear was about Philadelphia’s new mayor, Charelle Parker: a woman, a black women, so a first for Philadelphia on both counts. Good for her. Good for them. Good for us.

Next day, after finishing my work at home, I decided to slowly “put Christmas away”. A sad chore I usually procrastinate on ( like many others), so I decide to do it a little bit at a time. It was time to wash all the Christmas themed kitchen towels, so after taking them to the laundry room, I replaced them with my year round plain blue kitchen towels, which described exactly how I felt: blue. I missed my family: the sounds, the scents , the hugs. As every year, I left one little ceramic Christmas tree out by the stove; the one that stays with me all year, to remind me of family, of Christmas time, of cold nights and warm drinks, of Cozy pajamas. It is now chipped since it is never put away, it is the witness to all our kitchen messes, burnt things, quick wipe downs and also delicious meals, comforting soups and all the experiments I make on the stove as well. Like my husband says, the chips add character. So there it stands. Now I look forward to our next family gathering, hopefully soon… Happy 2024 everyone.