12.16.2009

Benign Neglect

Does this desk look lonely?


















No? Well, who has been working at it?
Oh, the little creatures have been busy with Christmas ornaments and holiday cards.
Wait, wait -- is that a poem I see buried underneath?
Yes, it is, but it appears to be yellowing with age.





















Has someone been procrastinating about putting away laundry? Is that a suitcase I see buried underneath? One that hasn't been unpacked yet? Do you think it will get unpacked before next Wednesday when it will need to be packed again?




















What's for dinner? Oh, I see: yogurt and salsa.



















How about a glass of milk with that?




















Oh. Well, maybe there's more in the outside refrigerator.


















Ok. Maybe not. But, hey, there's a package of hot dog and four yogurts. That's another meal!

**

Reader, it's the most wonderful time of the year. The Season of Benign Neglect. I am embracing it fully. Beds are unmade, counters un-wiped, and laundry un-done. Refrigerators are empty. Mail and toys and tape and legos and tea sets and dolly clothes and toothbrushes and towels are piling up everywhere, and seem to be multiplying in the dark of the night. And my writing desk is very, very lonely.

But my shopping is FINISHED, we have plenty of toilet paper, and the kids are happy and healthy. Those three facts are unrelated, but I mention them because I am letting all the rest go for now, knowing everything else will be waiting for me come January (wait -- did I just throw in the towel for two whole weeks??).

I hope you are neglecting some things, too, so that you have time to enjoy the twinkle lights, the music, and the magic of the season. I wish you warm, cozy days and silent nights. Happy holidays!

5 comments:

htc said...

Thank you for this.
-A random reader, mother, writer of sorts.

CitricSugar said...

Amen to that!

And your fridge may be on the empty side but wowsa is it ever clean! You are quite tidy in your "neglect". Enjoy the break!

ljchicago said...

Throw in a child's birthday nine days before Christmas and you get this: PIG. STY. We keep the birthday and Christmas celebrations simple but things still get messy.

That's the thing about the holidays -- you have to do the every day stuff in addition to the other stuff!

Molly said...

Coolclan, you're welcome, from one writer-of-sorts to another. CitricSugar, the frig might look clean, but you notice I didn't provide a close-up shot. ljchicago - you are so right: the "regular" stuff doesn't stop; kudos to you for managing a birthday on top of the holiday stuff on top of everything else!

Dana L. Dillon said...

My life is neglect of everything but grading right now. I am not brave enough to photograph my house and share. Kudos to you!