A friend recently asked what I really wanted this Christmas. And the words that came out of my mouth (narrowly edging out “anything from Bottega Veneta”) were: “A heaping pile of steaming goodness.”
I mean it. And if you’ve seen Bottega Veneta’s spring line, you’ll know I must REALLY want goodness because those designer duds are tough to resist.
In my country, the headlines are filled with impeachment and shootings. 24/7. And then all the vitriol both sides of the aisle are spewing.
And it’s Christmas. There’s that.
I am craving goodness so much it’s physical. I can feel myself drawn like a magnet to people spreading good cheer, buying coffee for random strangers, purchasing gifts for children lost in the foster care system. People who wear aprons and smell of sugar cookies and have flour in their hair. People who hum Christmas carols while shopping.
I believe what you focus on grows. So let’s collectively focus on some good juju this Christmas. I’ll start.
A warm comfy mattress on a cold night. Heaps of covers. A book that inspires.
A dog-sitting son who sleeps the night with just one bun on the bed, because the three dogs he’s watching are nestled around him. And whose bleary-eyed a.m. expression shows me what he’ll look like (hopefully years from now) as a new parent.
Christmas cookies. Mint chocolate, raspberry oat and the ever-trusty sugar cookie. And the perfect amount of give versus crunch on the first bite.
A big family and a big Christmas celebration in a year where we lost no one, and we cheered those going through trials right through to the other side. Everyone needs a cheering section at some point in life.
Winning my battle with the screaming meanies at the town assessor’s office. Ebenezer Scrooge revised my property tax hike to half of what was proposed. It’s not a stunning victory for me, but it’s enough for now. I’ll take it. Merry Christmas to me.
The. Very. Best. Butter. Almond. Toffee. On earth. Here. Careful. It’s addicting.
The realization, upon awakening, that it’s the weekend. No deadlines. No clients calling. Room to breathe.
A drink with an old friend in which we realize our older selves’ talk of books and future plans and practical things is something our younger selves would question —so staid, so settled of us. Here’s to letting the years mellow us in the very best ways.
My 90-pounds-of-crazy dog and her morning salutation ritual. Head burrowed into my stomach, pushing me to the other side of the bed, so she can snuggle in until I’m ready to face the day. Cold, wet nose on my cheek. Eyes staring, filled with love. Unconditional in every way.
Authors who write like the gods whisper in their ears. A book basket full of those hushed confidences, waiting for me to slow down and listen. I’m almost there.
My son’s smile as he walks in the door for a two-week winter break.
Endings. My farewell to the people and situations that no longer serve my highest good, my best self.
Beginnings. The sweet anticipation of the good to come, the friends I’ve not yet met, the love yet to come. Good on its way has a certain energetic feeling. It’s better than morning coffee.
Love, love and more love to you, my readers, this holiday. May it see you into this fabulous new decade that we’re entering. 2020 has a nice ring to it. I just know there’s a heaping pile of steaming goodness in there somewhere.
Merry Christmas to you and yours. Or Happy fill-in-the-holiday-you-celebrate.
Wishing you good, good and more good.
candidkay 
I hope you had a good christmas and new years!!
Thank you! And Happy New Year to you!
This is just beautiful…you are so right….what we think is what we draw to us…
Thank you❤️
And a very Merry Christmas to you and yours too! 🙂🎄
Hey, finally catching up Kristine. Hope you are recovering (((hugs))) sorry didn’t mean to hurt. I’m not as good as you about enumerating my blessings, but I sure know how to corral them in place of negative or wasteful people and feelings. Do keep on reminding us what a lovely world it can be if we welcome it in, while caring for those who are at a lower ebb. Happy holidays from Jersey (C.I.)
Happy Holidays, Roy! And I am excepting gentle hugs :-). Emphasis on the gentle.
Spread Love It’s The Brooklyn Way. Happy Holidays ✨
No sleep till Brooklyn😉. Am I showing my age? Happy Holidays to you and yours. Hope they’re filled with love.
That already sounds like a heaping pile, but wishing you all the good you need and just a bit more 🙂
Thanks, Andrea! Happy holidays! Many blessings to you in 2020.
Kids, dogs, and family around us. I’m grateful for so many things right now, especially my daughter being home from uni for a few days, and on top of it, our local mail carrier just dropped a Christmas parcel off at our door–on a Sunday!
Wow! Daughter home and Sunday mail to boot! A great start to the holiday season! Wishing you and your family a beautiful one🎅🎅
I wish all of these wonderful things for you, Kristine. Such a beautiful list, full of hope and love. ❤
Merry Christmas to you and yours, Jennifer! Thank you. 🎄🎄
Love this! Hope you and the family have a wonderful Christmas.
Thanks, Katie! Merry Christmas to you and the family! 🎄🎄🎄
Happy great things to you, Kay, both those familiar and wonderful enough to keep in your life and new, just waiting to make the next decade full and all that want and need. You got us all off to a good start with this list of positives.
Thanks, Mark! Have a merry Christmas and enjoy the family!!
I’ll take that good and offer it right back to you! What a beautiful, light filled piece. Thank you so much. My weary heart truly benefited.
Oh, I’m glad it helped your heart! It’s the time of year when no one should be dealing with “heavy.”
Can only wish you a pile of heaping goodness, Kristine. And a very Merry Christmas.
And a very Merry Christmas to you, John! Thanks for reading, commenting and always being such a good egg.
😊
Very nice. You’re seeing, or hoping to see, a tall order of niceness as we start the new decade. I’m right there with you. I wish you a very Merry Christmas, Kristine.
Merry Christmas, Steve! I hope it brings a warm fire, a dark beer and old friends for you:).
Thank you, Kristine. I do like the Guinness and all my friends are old (but young in spirit 😉) except for all my young ‘friends’ at my school crossing post. So, I guess I’m doing okay. Now, if it would only get warmer…
Just keep the Guinness among the “old” friends😉
Why thank you Kristine for your blessings, your ‘goodness’ to me over the year, and most certainly for your fellow weakness of something chocolate. Do they have that in white chocolate? That would be a ‘goodness’ too good to be true 😀 ❤️
May your Christmas be filled with a goodness your heart desires young lady, one that brings that inner smile or at the least the contentment of a toffee or two. Ok, six then, but only because its Christmas lol 😀 ❤️
More like 16 on the toffees, Mark. Oy:). And we’ll have to agree to disagree on the white vs. milk chocolate bit. Either way, it’s damn good! Merry Christmas to you and yours . . .
Thank you Kristine, may we suffer diligently for our weakness’s, regardless its flavor 😀
Thanks for adding your bits of cheer to the world Kristine. Yes the little bits add up. May 2020 be filled with big steaming piles of goodness. 💝
For all of us! Amen to that:). Wishing you a wonderful holiday with family and friends!
Thanks!
Hi Kristine, Thank you for your beautiful thoughts. Whether your country is enduring issues of impeachment, brexit or raging bushfires, we all need a little goodness. Here’s to some positivity and love this Christmas season 🥂
Happy holidays.
Kerrie Brown
I agree! Needing an infusion of good knows no national boundaries at the moment. I think it’s a global feeling. I hope you and yours have a wonderful holiday season!
Dear Kristine,
Such a wonderful Christmas post. It truly is the little and not so little things that bring joy, (That sentence is syntactically skewed but you get it!) Funny how as we get older, our wish for things (Bottega Veneta excluded) diminishes and makes room for time and moments. Presence over presents.
I wish for you all those beautiful things you desire in 2020 – and hey, a piece from Bottega Veneta wouldn’t hurt either!
Merry Christmas and lotsa love,
Dale
Presence over presents, for sure. Thanks for the kind words, Dale. And while a little BV in 2020 would be nice, continued health, prosperity and all those intangibles trumps all, right? Merry Christmas to you and yours!
Oh hell… I could so use a shopping spree right now but yes. Health (mine is slowly getting better), prosperity (I start looking for a job in January) and all those intangibles make the rest worth it!