Things That Make Me Happy

There are many things that make me happy, some of which I caught on camera the last few days.  Here's a sample of what I got on film.  It's not an exhaustive list of the good times I've had with friend and family the past few days, but I wanted to share just a few of the joys of the season for me this year.  Enjoy!

My hair is getting longer, and, despite not having it cut since last April or May and four months of dreads, it still looks pretty good.  It's been years since I had hair this long or my natural color.  I like both.

Out both of my bedroom windows are huge pine trees.  They may me incredibly happy.

I pretend I'm sleeping in a tree house sometimes.

The vanity in my apartment is big, well-lit, plentifully supplied with mirrors, and makes me very, very happy.  It is especially nice because it has room for all my jewelry boxes.  The jewelry rack was a Christmas present and a very necessary one.  

Yesterday morning there was a cat climbing up the tree outside my window.  It was fascinating and adorable.  

My students wrote letters to Santa again this year.  We give them to the Macy's Believe campaign, which donates $1 to the Make a Wish Foundation for every letter to Santa they get.  My students last year knocked me down with an incredible 1746 letters.  This year, my students recruited family, friends, their other teachers, and complete strangers to come up with a whopping 3761 letters.  This is the finished stack.  

Coming home for the holidays always makes me happy.  As soon as I stepped out of the car tonight, I was hit with the crisp, cold Idaho air, a mix of pine smoke from the family's fireplace, and the smell of cold fall leaves.  Add in an evening singing Christmas songs with my Dad at the assisted living center, a beautiful sunset over the fields and trees, and coming home to Christmas lights, and it's been a wonderful evening.  

Sitting on the couch, uploading pictures to my computer, watching our overly affectionate dog try and distract my mom from reading a magazine while both of them compete for the spot in front of the fireplace is another one of those "essence" of home moments.

What is Santa Like?

Children all over the world stay up late on Christmas Eve, trying to catch a glimpse of the elusive Santa.  They write letters to him, they sing songs about him, they put out cookies and milk to bait him closer, and in one TV show (Doctor Who) a little girl even prays to him.  

Every year, Macy's has a Letter to Santa campaign, and for every letter they collect they donate $1 to the Make a Wish Foundation.  Therefore, every year my students and I band together to write hundreds of letters.  They write them by the dozens themselves, they recruit little brothers and sisters to write letters, they take them to family Christmas parties, Mutual activities, and even have former teachers have their classes write letters.  Last year my students wrote 1746 letters, donating $1,746 to charity.  This year my students are determined to beat the record.  

So, in order to have them practice their argument-writing skills and get more letters to Santa, I had them write to Santa again today, presenting arguments about why they should receive presents.  They needed to include at least one emotional and one ethical appeal.  As they were working, one student raised his hand for help.  As i was giving him an example argument he could use to convince Santa, he listened carefully.  When I was done, he said in all seriousness, "That doesn't sound much like Santa...Santa sounds more like...Al Gore."

Then he looked at me like I'd gone crazy while I walked away shaking my head and cackling like the Wicked Witch of the West.  

'Tis the Season

Yesterday I went to Walmart to grab potting soil.  After half an hour in the store, I exited into November air that was beginning to swirl with snow.  But that's ok, because I was pushing a huge cart on which sat the box for an enormous Christmas tree I'd talked myself into buying.  Someday I will only use real trees, I am a real tree snob and look down on fake trees as paltry representations of Christmas.  However, real trees are expensive every year, and this fake tree is only expensive one.  Real trees require stands and hours spent stringing lights and watering and vacuuming.  In my one bedroom, I-live-alone apartment, a fake tree makes much more sense.  I can set it up in a matter of minutes, its pre-strung lights blazing merrily.  When the season's over I can pack it up just as quickly into a box in the closet, where it will patiently wait another year.  I can spend my time making homemade decorations instead.  Besides, after many college years of no tree or Christmas decorations whatsoever, even a fake tree makes the apartment feel like it's swimming in Christmas.

In the meantime, bringing it home has put me into extreme holiday mode.  Even if the tree is currently in the closet, waiting the right snowy afternoon and maybe some company to set up and decorate, I'm whistling Christmas tunes, and my mind is on the holidays.  For example, I happen to have nine large, tart apples on my table, and on a rainy or perhaps snowy Sunday morning I'm asking myself, apple pie or apple crisp?