oh the places i've been!
Mexican Santa came from a trip to Acapulco. My dance group had travelled to perform for an arts festival. Scottish Santa came from a visit to Edinburgh during a mother-daughter trip a few years ago.
I have several whimsical favorites. My Hawaiian Santa wears swimming trunks and a reindeer pool floaty around his waist. He also has flippers and a snorkel on. I also have a Santa riding a space shuttle. I got that one when I visited NASA in Houston.
My tree has been up since October before Halloween.
https://steemit.com/halloween/@jnetsworld/this-is-halloween--2018-10-26-00-20-37
Slowly I've added ornaments. A memory savored of places I've been. I remember how my mom and I visited souvenir shops on different summers, looking for Christmas ornaments. I remember wandering foreign bazaars sometimes alone and sometimes with a friend, hunting for that specific regional expression of my favorite season.
Some of my ornaments come from countries I've yet to visit. The gifts of family and friends who traveled and thought of me.
My holiday routine of putting the tree up in October and slowly Christmas-izing my home is my fortification habit to usher a new year with optimism. I've spent the occasional holiday season alone. But I've never felt alone. The proof of loving relationships past and present decorates my home.
I also put up Christmas cards collected through the years. The yearly family card from my brother shows my nephews growing up. I've known some of my students before they knew their ABCs and now they are teens and signing their own cards. And some cards I read just to remember someone who delighted me in the past that I've lost track of.
I need a bigger home to display the love that has come through my life.
2018 has been a challenging year. It has been marked by pain and heartache. Every year has its difficulties as well as triumphs. My Christmas routine that begins in October is like putting armor on for the new year.
Some collect magnets and shot glasses from their travels. I've collected ornaments.
Here's to the good fight and a happy new year.
JNET
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