Around the Bluhmin’ Town

By

Judy Bluhm

This week, as we make the Big Approach to all things Christmas, we might be flooded with memories of days gone by. The kids who grew up, the loved ones that passed, reliving the special moments we shared with friends and family around a table or a festive tree. It might be impossible not to feel a pang of sadness when our table has one less place-setting.

We strive to be joyful during the holidays, and then grief shows up. The uninvited intruder, barging in unannounced. Sometime between carving the turkey and slicing the pie, a poignant memory arrives, like a sudden flash when you realize a voice is missing from the conversation. Holidays punctuate not only what we have, but what we have lost.

Thankfully, random acts of kindness show us the world is still one big, beautiful place. There is the mystery person in the car in front of you who buys your coffee at the drive-through. The young neighbor decorating the yard for the elderly couple next door. The carolers who grace your door with holiday songs. There are children who bring hot cocoa to the local fire department. And folks are taking gift baskets to nursing homes. We donate toys to kids in need. There are bell ringers who stand at the grocery stores to remind us that every dollar in that red kettle matters. Generosity is all around us.

Sometimes we focus on conflicts, politics, or worries. News is often unpleasant and even infuriating to read. Yet it is the holidays that might help us “breakthrough” the noise and fill or minds with our own tunes. When a young nurse asked an elderly man who was visiting his wife in a nursing home, how he coped with the “all the depressing problems in our world,” he chuckled. Then he said, “It’s easy, since I don’t see the world through printed headline. I make my own headlines.” He offered the following “headlines” he plays through his mind. “Husband loves wife. Lost puppy is found. Teacher praises child. Nurses help others. People are kind.” A testimony that happiness is up to each one of us. Not the world.

As this year comes to an end and the holidays swing into full gear, it is good to reflect on all the ways we might find the “merry” during this Christmas season. It may not be a perfect world, but the spirit of the holidays makes it about as good as it gets.

My daughter’s neighbor died of cancer a few months ago. His widow, Anna, and young children decorated the house, just as her husband used to, with colorful lights. Anna said it may not feel like Christmas, but we are going to make sure it looks like Christmas. Because a string of lights is a poignant reminder that one little bulb at a time can shine brightly, breaking the darkness of grief. As if to shout out, “my spirit will not be dimmed.”

This is why it is called the most wonderful time of year.

Judy Bluhm is a writer and a local realtor. Contact Judy at [email protected] or visit www.aroundthebluhmintown.com