Don't Show Me, Just Tell Me

A few days before Christmas I overheard this conversation.


Sarah: Joel, I got you something for Christmas.
Joel: What is it?
Sarah: It's a surprise.
Joel: Don't show me, just tell me.

O, Christmas Tree

Laurie suggested a Christmas Tree Tour (having bloggers post pictures of their own trees).

Ours this year was too big for the space originally. We went to a corner lot in Bel Air where the Lion's Club was selling. They should call themselves Lions with Pines, but I digress.

I asked the young guy helping, "How tall are you? I need no bigger than a 7 foot tree." He said he was six feet. I know 6'6" when I see it, but not a mere 6 feet. So when we (Joel, Sarah and I) selected our favorite tree, it looked less than 2 feet taller than the guy. Wrong.

It not only scraped the ceiling, it bent like in a scoliatic way (if that's a word. The tree had scoliosis). So we hacked off the top and I wanted to send that part to Trip in Iraq. (I'm such a sap, but "sap" was a problem that could drip and the whole package rejected by customs). Besides, we figured the needles would die in transit. Great-- send a soldier a dead tree to cheer him and his buddies. So we tossed it out.

This year I was really in the mood to decorate, feeling very nostalgic; we put up almost every ornament we own. I am trying to get rid of all the storebought baubles and just keep the handmade stuff or things given as gifts.
-One red velvet heart was given to us volunteers at the Crisis Pregnancy Center. Some crocheted wreaths were given us by clients of Paul's dad who was a plumber in the city.
-A small poinsettia boutenniere was from Paul's wedding tux.
- A crazy wrought iron coyote from my Aunt Linda in Santa Fe. Joel helped , which explains the bottom heaviness of decorations.
-The poinsettia tree skirt is a round tablecloth from Mexico, which I bought on a trip the year I miscarried Hope Kathryn (1999). It reminds me of the poverty I saw down there in a town ironically named Progresso. Even more ironic is heaping lots of gifts on top of it.
-I tied two patriotic ribbons onto the tree this year, one to represent my sister, Andrea, who is playing the supporting role to her husband while he's in Iraq, one for Trip himself. Actually, he's coming "home" for the holidays to Vegas and then Hawaii.

The angel sometimes sits straight and sometimes crooked on top. I think I'd sit crooked all the time if I had a tree branch up my skirt.

"Thanks for your Help"

Today Joel was playing a video game and couldn't find a certain lever that would get him where he needed to go. He had tried everything.

"Can you help me, please, Mom?"

"Oh, Joel, you know I'm no good at video games. I don't even like them. How could I help you?"

"Just tell me where the lever is, where to go, so I can get out. It's hiding."

Just then I saw two green blinking lights on the screen, in a distance, down a tunnel.

"What are those green lights for? Try them." I doubted it, I mean you don't usually hide something and then flash green lights over the spot.

He tried it. It worked. "Thanks, Mom."

A few minutes later he said again, "Thanks for your help, Mom. I really appreciate that. Now I made it to the next level."

It's nice to help kids get to the next level, even if it is only on a dumb video game.