Christmas Candles

On Sunday I got the bug to decorate for Christmas. It was too early to decorate for Christmas, according to my normal reasoning, but I am trying to impliment Don Aslet’s “Do It Now” policy so I started. Mostly I got out things that were not too complicated – no lights, no fake pine-needles, no tinsel. Just my nutcracker and all of the Christmas candles and candle-holders I could lay my hands on. I set up my Christmas Tree shaped tea-light holder in the fireplace with several other candles with it and up on the mantle, and then, after the dishes were done and the rest of the Sabbath evening was ours, I lit all the candles all over the place and turned off the lights.\par
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Boy, were the boys, excited! (by this, I mean the little boys – Michael kept teasing me by saying things like “can we go, yet?” and “Isn’t this nice?” in a syrupy voice) I ignored him, and insisted that we sit on the couch together while the boys ran around exclaiming about the tame fire and the warm darkness. It was peaceful and beautiful, and as Judah sat in his dad’s lap, ecstatic, I started to slide into sentimental thoughts about having one’s family all together, and the holiday spirit, and the blessing of Christmas…\par
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…When Judah enthusiastically whirled around really fast and gave his dad a bloody lip with his elbow.\par
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One should not get too sentimental.