I’m Free again till Sunday night when the workweek resumes but till then this kid is in charge. Well as much as the illusion allows. I don’t know if it’s over 5 decades of full-time work (I started young) or if it’s just the point and place in my career after all those years that has me tired.
Please don’t get me wrong. I go into work each week trying to improve, be the best in my area and group, support my teammates, and give more than an honest day’s work. In my job even when I’m off I’ve never really been off. Being on-call or just an emergency resource leads to some strange hours.
But this break from the job that pays the bills is nice. Oh, the choices of things to do with those precious hours. Maybe hug my better half, work on my crafts, catch up on some rest, watch a game with the boys, get some exercise, work on the yard and home. So many choices and so little time.
I was relaxed on the couch and a commercial came on that started me thinking about the holiday season coming up. And it’s funny my first reaction was not one of joy and anticipation. It wasn’t a chill of what special gift ideas I needed to come up with to get those smiles I look for in my loved one’s faces. It wasn’t thinking about who’s home, the rotation is this year for Thanksgiving and Xmas. It wasn’t about the positive energy of anticipation I feel going into a New Year.
It was a sense of sorrow and uncertainty. It was a sense of almost dread of what was on the other side. Just because the calendar changes doesn’t mean it’s a guarantee that 2021 is going to be better than this year. It’s a sense that gatherings will be smaller or not at all. It’s a sense of the chaos of the last 4 years will ratchet up in the coming months. It’s a feeling of medical uncertainty. Its a feeling of financial uncertainty.
I’m sure I’ll push those to the side and behind me as much as possible and put on a positive and fun holiday face. But just below that smile is one of sadness knowing many families will be experiencing holidays with the loss of loved ones, sick family members, facing great financial strain or employment issues. Or just the stress of all that has transpired and will in the coming months.
So let’s help keep the spirits up as best possible. Let’s not forget those in pain and struggling. Let’s try to keep our cool.
Random Thoughts of the Day
- Unless you have the patience of Job don’t try to be a caregiver.
- There are so many people skating on thin ice it’s bound to give way.
- I’m a firm believer in “Be nice, until its time not to be nice”
