121 days and counting..

i'm counting down to christmas like it's next month. christmas never loses its novelty for me. i've never had a white 25 Dec. no slaving over the oven for the whole day to prepare a turducken (ok, i don't think anyone is crazy enough to domestically prepare one..). no roasted chestnuts unless we head over to chinatown and buy a bag of them home..

in fact, christmas has me watching old reruns of muppet's christmas carol, christmas cartoons and "love actually" in the comforts of my home, snuggling on the sofa in my boxers, sloppy tee, hoodie and cushion, while the rain beats viciously on the window panes. prob a hot honeyed tea or chamomile tea or thick viet coffee next to me; then finally concussing on the sofa until i get awaken up to dump the ribs into the oven and cook the sausages.

that's the point of a holiday, isn't it?

i can almost imagine the pitchforks flying my way, asking abt the christmas spirit.

i'm not saying that i throw away the intent of christmas for me to indulge in sloth. i'm just saying that it's a break from the wheels of monotony for me to do as i wish.

i celebrate christmas the way i want to.. for a good 2-3 weeks of december, it's a time of cheer, laughter and rest. all the meet-ups. the falala meals and yummy gingerbread cookies. fab baking sessions in the kitchen to churn out trays of fudge and pretty cupcakes. i hope starbucks has a gingerbread cinamon coffee frappe. or peppermint choc coffee. like mega awesomeness.

all the good cheer and crying babies

over spilt milk and half-eaten santa cookies

candy canes hooked around the shell of your ear

as you nibble away on another old jolly rerun

and despite the gray chill of the rain soaked skies

you hear yourself cry out, "Merry Christmas to all."

"And to all, a good night."

- (c) sk

that covers cheer and laughter. rest? i seek rest badly. people who know what i went thru in '98 and '99 prob understand more why i say that. i'm not just talking abt break from work. it's a break from everything that the world expects of me.. into a world where i'm all i really want to be. at rest.

He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters - Psalm 23:2

that's the kind of rest i want. that kind of serenity and comfort where i'm able to lie down and be led beside calm waters. where i just feel safe with myself and the world. just because i'm at peace with Him.

christmas is a time i remember to look around me and give thanks for the rest. the peace. the holiday helps me go back to the basics of why that child laid to rest away in the manger. back to the simplicity of remembering the joy to the world and the reason why the herald angels sing, "God and sinners reconcile."

reconciled to rest. as long as i keep counting down, i pray that i remind those around of this rest. that those who have not yet come to believe may one day question the simply complex waxing of "religious" carols.

121 days and counting..