Who else is taking down their holiday decor today? A quick aside – in my mind the word Holiday is a contraction of the words holy and day so it does not bother me at all to hear or to use this word when referencing Christmas.
Down came the twinkling colored lights, the row of three foot tall lit candy canes, the cutesy inflatables, and the flashing snowflake lights strung as high as I could get them for the entire length of my patio. This year, above all years, it made my heart happy to go as tacky as I could and I loved every minute of it! I’d heard a few people here and there say that this just didn’t seem like the time to do a lot of Christmas decorating. They had no energy to bother And took a hard pass.
I know that my particular neighborhood was not the only exception to this but having lived here for over 20 years I can say that I’ve never seen such an enthusiastic display of joyous expression. Finally something to be giddy about perhaps. Even a safe activity to take the neighborhood kids to after dark, to stroll the street at your own pace in the crisp night air. And many nights there were families with strollers who walked and talked while the kids oo’d and ah’d.
But it all has to come down and not just because in a matter of days it will become an eyesore worthy of a citation by the homeowner’s association landscape review committee. It is time. This year of all years the “taking down” part is my symbolic affirmative action to put away the old and make room for the new.
The patio lights that I had mourned being broken by the landscaper have been restored and will be rehung. The broken fountain that is heavily visited by all the neighboring birds will have, at long last, a new water pump that will restore it to its former majesty.
Sometimes we hang on tightly to old things feeling that it’s all we’ve got left. But now, right now, is as good a time as any to make room for the good things that will surely come next.
I’m ready for you, 2021!
The Daily Cuppa Jo 