I am grateful for what I am and have – Henry David Thoreau, American essayist, poet (1817-1862)

Christmas is doing a little something extra for someone – Charles Schulz, American cartoonist (1922-2000)

It’s exactly one week since Thanksgiving as I write this column. I have two or three days to get the column in on time. It means in five days hopefully you’ll be reading this column while I will be preparing and hosting the Sunday School Christmas gathering at our home. For the first time the class suggested we have a progressive dinner. A progressive dinner is a social dinner that takes place across multiple locations, with each host and hostess serving a different course. The Sunday School guests will follow a route after stopping for each of the courses then moving on to the next. My first project to get done was to remove the Thanksgiving garland with beautiful silk orange and brown colors, knitted pumpkins, embroidery hangings with words of gratitude. The Thanksgiving items were packed away under the stairwell in storage.

Christmas items are also under the stairwell with more in outdoor garage storage. Christmas lights, wreaths, garland and a decorated two-foot Christmas tree were piled on the front porch. The house is surrounded by cedar, pine, and magnolia trees. Greenery makes for wonderful and natural decorations added to wreaths and other arrangements. Table size nativity scenes will be inside, along with ornaments of angels, shiny Christmas balls, twinkling lights and pinecones.

Then a menu was to be decided. The leader of the progressive dinner assigned the Bardwells with appetizers. This was a perfect course for the Bardwells as my cooking skills are seriously lacking. The first thing to be done was to contact my friend who is also a caterer. She’s terribly busy but was willing to fit us in. That’s a good friend. All I have to do is purchase appropriate crackers, and small clear plates. Virtually no clean up, just pop what’s left in the trash. I think it will be nice. Only three people will be hosting so the others get to just sit back and enjoy the fellowship and food. Travel will be easy as well. Most of us live close by while the others will come together or have someone picking them up.

I plucked a book “Not Buying It, My Year Without Shopping” by Judith Levine off the shelf. It was printed in 2006. I tried it for one year and was totally miserable. In my younger years I loved to go thrifting and there are days that I still do. Funny thing, while I was under the stairway pulling out decorations, I came to a small book I had purchased at a library book sale in 2018. I loved that little book, discovered the rightful owner through Google, and returned it to her. She and her husband were so excited while I was able to hold back the tears for at least a minute. If she allows me to share it with you, I will.

Shannon Bardwell is a writer living quietly in the Prairie. Email reaches her at [email protected].