namaste612

Despite the retailers decking the halls far too early – even before Halloween - I refuse to even think about the holiday season until Thanksgiving. On Friday, the day after my mom’s enormous feast that kicks off this festive time of year, I lug the red and green containers up from the musty basement. Sorting through ornaments that have been in storage all year is almost as exhilarating as Christmas morning. I delight in each homemade Popsicle stick ornament proudly displaying my son’s school pictures in succession. There’s the nativity Mom brought back from Israel, which my son used to call “the Jesus house.” I unwrap each wooden figure and set them in their assigned places around the manger. And in the same container is the heavy brass menorah I bought at Hallmark when I first moved to Pennsylvania, along with half a box of crayon colored candles.