Crash, crash, crash! Two weeks before Christmas, my son shatters an ornament with three jabs of a mini hockey stick. I spend the afternoon combing through the carpet for shards of glass and vacuuming until a satisfying array of lines replaces the mess. The hand-painted ornament was a favorite—a souvenir from the San Diego Zoo—and each year when we placed it on the tree, I … Continue reading A Tree Full of Stories
I love white twinkle lights on palm trees.⠀I love a mailbox full of Christmas cards.⠀I love baristas and cashiers decked out in ugly sweaters and reindeer headbands with jingle bells.I love fancy gingerbread houses.⠀I love homemade ornaments made with handprints and pipe cleaners and gobs of paint (but not glitter…just…no).I love baking cookies with little chefs in tiny aprons.I love angels flapping awkwardly in live … Continue reading I Love…Christmas Edition
First, gather your thoughts, your courage, your composure. Collect them like a late-autumn bouquet of chrysanthemums, pluck them up like the last roses before the frost. Dress yourself in finery; put on kindness, wear a crown of peace on your head and never take it off. Knock on the door, ring the bell, or just walk right in. These are your people. Or they once … Continue reading How to Gather
I. I started working at a nursing home when I was 16, and the first winter I worked there, I forgot to ask for Christmas off. The residents needed to eat, and it was my job to pour their drinks, roll silverware into napkins, and do the dishes. While most teenagers would’ve been really excited about time-and-a-half pay, I felt guilty for derailing our family … Continue reading Four Christmases
“Thanks so much for picking this up,” I say to my husband. I set the takeout containers on the counter and start to dish food onto four plates, rushing so I can get it to the hangry children in the living room. My husband hides two chocolate lava cakes in the refrigerator without the kids seeing him, and we give each other a silent nod. … Continue reading Thanksgiving To Go
Melissa Kutsche 