"The Unwrapping" of the Holiday Season 2019
“The Unwrapping” of the Holiday Season 2019
After the Storm
Holidays are like a giant storm encapsulating us. Time stands still while we make merry inside our “snow globe” with friends and family. During this season, much is forgiven, and more often than not, more is expected. On New Year's Day, the “snow” begins to melt and real-life resumes. I realize that most of us have barely dipped one toe into 2020. This number sounds so futuristic. Personally, resolutions are not in my repertoire. Self-improvement is a daily quest. I disassemble my Christmas trees (two trees seemed like a good idea in early December), pack away the china and Champagne flutes, then toss the cookies that I put a January 2nd expiration date on. I come to realize that I am sad about letting 2019 go. Was this fear speaking? You know what you have, not what you are going to get. Where was my optimistic self? Luckily, while boxing ornaments, I found “her” in the attic.
On the last page of my high school yearbook is a picture of me walking through a snowy tunnel in New York’s Central Park. The photo was taken, and the caption written for me by a fellow student and friend. I share this with you, my readers, as it is a poem that prolifically says it all.
Circa: 1980
Donna,
When you approach the ending of:
The lightening of a storm
The joyfulness of a sunshine
The highest the spirit of fantasy
The lowest the harmony of reality
The longest time of a school year
The shortest period of a life
Remember:
The sun is giving
The earth is turning
Man is living
Ending is beginning.
- Coleman Fung
As we bid adieu to 2019, all that it gave and took away, let us toast to the beginning of 2020 and hope for more sunshine and fewer storms.
Warm Regards,
Donna
Note: Last I knew, Coleman Fung was attending R.P.I. Fall of 1980 to become a Nuclear Engineer. I have no idea where he is today. His words reside in my mind and also, in my attic.