As we take down the Christmas tree with all the various decorations, along with the lighted villages, it becomes almost bittersweet.
Good to be done with all the cooking, shopping, wrapping ,and oohs and ah's over each gift you receive.
All, while you wonder " what in the world will I ever use that for " and "oh goody, another plant to torture with my black thumb". Does it make you wonder if the kids even notice that you have no living greenery in the entire house?
Getting it all cleaned and packed neatly away till next year is a three-day job by itself.
New Year is still another pain in the butt. You almost feel obligated to stay up and watch the ball drop as a new year creeps around the corner.
I am not sure about so many others but at seventy-two years old my bed is beckoning me way before midnight. However, I think I found a viable solution. Since my original roots are from New York state, I watch the Dick Clark ball drop at eleven p.m Midwest time on television. This allows me to see the New Year in appropriately and go to bed just a few moments after eleven p.m.
I do know it is cheating but it gives me a sense of satisfaction I saw the New year in and I was true to my native roots. I know, silly musings, but they do work for me.
All the Holiday cheer has been packed away and consumed. ( whichever is appropriate for any given situation) and I wonder ... what comes next?
After being so busy for well over three months it now seems empty and strangely quiet. Maybe because during the Holidays we Elders hear from and see our family members more often and somehow catch up on each one's life, and reconnect once again. Then afterward there is this void of no one or nothing once more.
We can't just pick up the phone and ask about size or color as an excuse to have a conversation with any member of our younger generation.
No, now we have that cold silence and we feel we are just not important enough to keep informed of everything. That is when many of us start to feel lonely, isolated, sad, and resenting growing old.
We don't have to, we do it to ourselves, and our children and grandchildren have lives to live. We did a great job of teaching them to do that, you know? So, now what?
How about we stop eating worms, and do something for ourselves? Let's take a cruise, or a rock and roll cruise. How about a paddle boat cruise on the great Mississippi even? Or, we could take a vacation. Somewhere here in the states that we always wanted to visit. Don't feel like traveling? let's paint the kitchen or better yet go get a makeover at Ulta Beauty! Call a friend and have a day at the spa! Let's just do something for us! It will lift our spirits and help us feel alive again.
We need to remember to take care of ourselves and be all that we can be. After all, we are old, not DEAD!