Happy Holidays

In the spirit of the season...

I had the opportunity last week to attend an all school Christmas sing-along at the Beautiful Boy's elementary school, and other than the usual kicking myself (deservedly so) in the fanny for spending too much time at work and missing too many of such things for my two lovely older children, it was one of those sweet moments when you realize how really precious life is. I spend an awful lot of time whining in this blog about how much better we could have it (and will continue to do so), but, truth be told, we as a nation are very blessed.

To wit: I stood in the school's cafeteria with the Beautiful Girl and watched as the children sang carol after carol with gusto, with sheer joy, and with the abandonment only five to ten-year-olds can have. Watching the excitement on their faces--Christmas is only days away, Winter Break starts in a few minutes, they're juiced on the sugar from their class parties--was a wonderful sight to behold, reminding me that America still has grand promise, and as long as we keep breeding (doubt that one's going away), we always will. Toward the end of the program, as the students and teachers were singing an increasingly disorganized "Twelve Days of Christmas," it dawned on me that at that moment, I had not a care in the world. It also dawned on me that, though not all of these children will succeed in life, the vast majority will, and for some odd reason this comforted me. Because some day these kids will take my place, and my neighbors' place, and my co-workers' place, and you know what? America will keep going, and though not all of them will, I'm sure there will be enough of them who will keep fighting the good fight that so many do to make this an even better country, an even more righteous country, and to look out for the least of their brothers. And that is a very good, and very hopeful, notion.

So...in the words of the jolly fat man in the red suit, "Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night."

Peace,
emaycee