slowness

 a long winter break...just the same as ever. 

sick at the beginning like always. exhausted from the exertion of the semester, my body finally gives up. by the time i'm better, i've adjusted to the new pace of time at home with the family. i'm slowed.

laziness, mixed with the annual official list of Things To Be Done:

buy the tree 

trim the tree

trim the house

do the dishes

sleep in

bake forever

clean the rooms

do the dishes

make the coffee

read the sunday times 

buy last minute gifts

go to holiday parties with the parents

do the dishes

then there are exotic chores, like walking the new dog on the path along the water, and re-discovering the old waffle iron....and eventually remembering that the first waffle always gets ruined. and remembering that i really like to cook, and proceeding to make lasagne and cookies and more waffles and potatoes and chocolate-just-about-anything.

there is the ritual cutting of my brother's hair, and also the ritual of him sitting on my feet while we watch tv, to keep them warm. really, there is a lot of tv. nature shows (everyone) dog shows (mom) movies (dad and me) and snowboarding videos, (brother) mostly. 

friends stop. time stops. work stops. there is only family. we re-learn how to be inside our family unit. we re-take up our roles. there is silver to polish for the table, and we drip wax into the bases to fit the new candles into the old candlesticks.

finally, there is dressing up and not leaving the house, as family arrives for christmas dinner. putting on fancy shoes just to wear in the living room has always felt odd.