12/26/2024
merry merry from the lone star state. this is a place where the culture is do things your on the way. we’re mavericks. and i’m proud of that. a proud texan.
although many moments of the day could have been experienced any other household:
the warm breath of a child hovering over me in my sleep, trying to be respectful in their anxiousness to open presents, not taking into account that i had only gotten two hours of sleep the night before;
the dance in the kitchen as multiple chefs cook multiple dishes;
neck hugs from people we haven’t seen in way too long; the kids tearing through their toys, then coming to me and telling me that they’re bored and my subsequent threat to take all this ish back;
the group prayer in a circle over the food and the hands that made it;
my dad falling asleep while “watching “ the game;
the realization that we made way too much food and arguing over who’s gonna take what home;
a small child climbing in my lap claiming they’re not sleepy, then two minutes later, snoring gently on my thighs;
i can’t get up. it’s either of our weight of them or the whiskey and eggnog.
then when the last guest leaves, there’s the inevitability that me and my mom are the last one standing. in the kitchen, cleaning up, giggling, gossiping and moving in sync to tuck away neatly the chaos of the day. this is sacred time.
even though i know we’re not unique in this in these things, i do sit back and listen. i watch, i observe, and i love that in our texas family we all have our little quirks in our idiosyncrasies and somehow, it all works.
we do things our own way and we make space for each other’s lives, needs, and wants. everything is bigger in texas. maybe even, hearts.
happy holidays. I hope you got everything you wanted and if not, there’s always next year.
