The Day Before Project #11 in the 12 Blogs of Christmas



Margaret had one of those Type A planner books with neat lines segregating the day into quarter hours. As Christmas approached those lines would all be full. But on the day before Christmas, every line was set aside for a special project. To give away the full day before Christmas took a lot of pre-planning, especially with the obligation to have everything just right for her own family on Christmas Day.

So, in early December Margaret checked off all the holiday duties and tasks. Not easy to do while caring for a baby girl and an adventuresome four-year-old son.





She’d been doing this Day Before Project every year since she was little—when she’d follow her mom around. Now, after all these years, Christmas Eve wasn’t the day before Christmas, it was an empty day in her planner to do exactly what she wanted—something dear to her heart. 












This year she was excited to bring along her young son. Loading her beautifully wrapped gifts in the backseat and trunk, the two headed to the local nursing homes. Margaret knew the elderly patients without any family. Her son handed out the gifts, bringing sweet smiles to the wrinkled faces. 

Each gift was a blanket Margaret had made during the past year. Mom and son got as much cheer as they gave away.








Stopping briefly for hot chocolate and a sandwich, the two went to two more nursing homes and then arrived at the children’s ward of the hospital before visiting hours were over. 

Special gifts of stuffed toys brought smiles to weary little faces and hope to anxious parents.








The town’s Christmas lights were beginning to sparkle as mom and son went home for dinner. As they walked into the house hand in hand, her son seemed as excited as she was. 

Perhaps the Day Before Project would continue another generation. That was something that filled her heart with joy as she climbed into bed on the night before Christmas.

Popular posts from this blog

Counting the Cost

Image
Something big is missing in this photo. Let me explain. Here in my hometown, the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe prepared a parcel of land for a new hotel. Plenty of planning and architectural designs were evaluated. A gemstone of a hotel would be built across from the waterfront—a beautiful, restful place welcoming travelers. A true four-star facility.   They cleared the aging brick structures that had been fading away between Front Street and Railroad Avenue. Then the pandemic hit, shortages of labor and supplies, add in the costly inflation that followed. Everything stopped.   But this is what I admire about the Elwha Tribe: they have counted the cost. They didn’t want to move forward and take on tremendous debt. They would rather move slowly and be financially ready, rather than begin building and then letting it sit unfinished.   Counting the cost is something I should have done earlier in life when I didn’t know what high interest rates would do to our farming cost...
Read more

Summertime Music

Image
During the summer months, in an outside seating area, a delightfully painted piano sits with a sign that says, “Play me”.   It was just before 8 pm as I walked past the piano. My bus would be arriving soon, and I still have another ten minutes to walk before reaching my bus stop. But no one is around. It’s a beautiful warm evening. I pulled out the piano bench and sat down. The sun was behind me, and the piano keys reflected its glow. I had no music in front of me, only the songs within me. Notes drifted into the air.  In those brief moments, the magic of music and summer came together. Isn’t that how it is? Summertime music has a way of lingering in our minds and lasting a lifetime. As I stood and grabbed my things, I heard distant clapping—I guess I wasn’t alone, after all.
Read more

Planting Good Seeds

Image
Harvest will always depend on what we plant and how well we care for our crop.    Looking over my seed packets, I notice they’re different than the ones I planted before. One package is called Word seeds. The directions say that each of my words is a seed, so it cautions me to think before I speak. Harsh words don’t produce sweet, nourishing fruit. These seeds will require thoughtful care in the garden. I see some Volunteer seeds. Those extra hours I tend to fritter away are going to be planted in a useful project.   It looks like time isn’t wasted in this garden plot. Next are some Love seeds—the directions are interesting: get up each day and love others. No specifics are given—just do something for someone every day. The seed package shows pictures of smiling faces. I smile back. As I’m ready to head to the garden with my seeds, a package falls to the ground. I open it. Inside are the tiniest seeds I’ve ever seen—but the directions s...
Read more