CHRISTMAS ON THE ROAD

December 31, 2011

A belated Merry Christmas to all you delightful peeps out there! And hopefully a right-on-time Happy New Year, too, unless something happens between now and midnight tomorrow night, which is entirely possible, considering the fact that I am writing this 700 miles from home. When one lives far from family, one is blessed with the opportunity to enjoy the thrill of traveling hundreds of miles (for us that takes place in a car) to multiple Christmases in multiple places. For us the week between Christmas and the new year is generally filled with traveling to Kansas City, Missouri and Rogers, Arkansas.

As nice as it is to return to familiar stomping grounds to visit with family and old friends, there’s a part of me that longs to stay home and bask in some Christmas peace for a few days, spend time relaxing in the afterglow of all the hustle and bustle involved in preparing for the holiday, rather than continuing the mayhem for another week on the road.

But that shall never be, at least as long as we still have family to visit, for what is Christmas all about if it’s not joining with our dearest loved ones to celebrate the birth of God’s son together? And eating too much really yummy food that doesn’t get cooked just any old time? And catching some after Christmas sales in much larger cities with stores never heard of in the small town of Corbin? And playing several board and gift exchange games with all those quirky relatives with which we long to bond? Huh? What could be more important than that?

If Jesus could travel from the infinite to the finite, from perfection with the Father to an imperfect world amid frail humanity, from peace and harmony in heaven to conflict and danger as all the powers of evil conspired to get rid of Him, then I can certainly trek across a few states to spend some time rejoicing with extended family in the freedom of our salvation made possible by that first Christmas journey.

And then when I come back to reality at my house, where all the Christmas decorations await the hideous de-decorating process, a week’s worth of travel laundry awaits the washer, the refrigerator awaits re-stocking, new stuff awaits a place to stick it, mail and newspapers await sorting, and the old bod awaits the energy to return to work, I must figure out how to attack the new year with all manner of resolutions, goals and minute by minute planning certain to make a new woman of me! I’ll let you know how that all works out for me.

In the meantime, I wish you much joy, good health, efficiency and faithful service to the Lord as you enter the new year of 2012!