After all is Said and Done...

What was This all about? Another remnant, leftover question, trailing into the coming days, weeks, and even months. After all the meet and greet, the convos that accompanied the big feast (2nd only to that from about a month ago, the 'real turkey'), the deserts, the combination of which found us loosening a few belt holes, in advance of a 'firmer resolve'...after all the plates have been cleaned up, the unused wrapping paper placed semi-neatly in the closet, the otherwise shredded paper, torn ribbons beyond recognition or that which might be 're-gifted' (Seinfeld) Christmas next...after all the weeks of prepping, fretting, frenzying, all for a few minutes, hours, or perhaps two days max of celebrating, posing as in  Currier and Ives Christmas photo (which, even in the best of circumstances these days, result in being photo bombed by some smart aleck in the family)...what meaning did you derive from all of this that might serve you and those in your life in the short days/long nights to come (aka winter around here)? Otherwise, are you simply burned out; was this all in vain...

Is This the End or the Beginning? As in the end of an extravaganza of giving and taking, the finale of what you consider the most dense holiday season around here, which started for most as they put up Halloween decor, which may have spanned a month or so itself, given the expanding Halloween Season (frightening for many, but not the retailers), and progressing right through December 31st, into the next year, or until they experience an Epiphany (January 6th for most). If you fall into the "Twelve Days..." category, good luck finding all the items and characters featured in the song, as well as a place to store them, supply line problems aside (maybe that's why we are seeing a rise in the build out of storage units; maybe it's not hoarding after all). Or, if you are a "Twelfth Night" type (a romantic comedy play written by William 'The Bard' Shakespeare in the early 1600's on behalf of those looking for some late Christmas season entertainment), good luck finding tickets for even an Off Broadway show, given the scarcity of thespians available and the recurrent pandemic protocols...On the other hand, if you are trying to carry forward the message from the First Christmas, engaging the full theological meaning, how do you reconcile, draw meaning from celebrating a birth of a child who, after just about four months later in the liturgical calendar (Easter moves around a bit, based in part on the lunar calendar), will be sent to crucifixion by many who just prior celebrated His arrival? Whose rebirth, the true meaning of Easter, becomes a sustaining source throughout the year and beyond, both the end of an earthly ministry and the beginning of something that continues to be one of the "Great mysteries of faith". Twelve days, nights, months...something here for everyone.