December is here! And as she makes her grand entrance with cold and snowy days it is indeed a welcome to a festive holiday season. Although the cold chills me to the bone, layering up instead of high heat bills, and warming up the car in the morning don't leave me screaming for joy I have to admit that I am a sucker for the traditional and not-so-normal (Ugly Christmas Sweater party) annual December must-dos.
Without a doubt the holidays are quite the time for visiting with old friends and family for dressing up and catching up. Once reunited I fall victim to the dreadful and dull "I can't believe this weather" or "How is work going?" conversation. It is only natural but I am dumbfounded and frusterated at the fact that my favorite people in this world could succomb to such boring conversation! (Although a few members of my family, I won't mention names, had the ever hilarious boob-popping-out story session at the table this past Thanksgiving...I was crying I was laughing so hard!)
A few months back I was preparing for a countless trip to Ashland to visit a dear friend KJ since Tessa was in town and gracing us with her presence. I knew the night would start with wine, proceed with Sex and the City watching and end with conversations late into the night about memories shared in college. Of course the "unplanned" way is fine but I wanted a little more substance this time around. I spent a good portion of my afternoon (ahem...at work) typing out questions, cutting them into strips and anticipated the grand conversations I would have with my friends.
"Name your favorite quality physical and nonphysical about yourself."
"What do you think you inherited from your Dad? Your Mom?"
"What do you hope your kids inherit from you someday?"
"What was your first memory at college?"
"When you were little what did you want to be when you grew up?"
And on and on ...and on! My point was to stay positive and be able to prompt the small things we often don't get to share with loved ones, when point is these are who we should be sharing them with! Of course, in between stories and memories, laughter and embarrassment came up and we lost time and track of what the original question was. In a time of year when we fill up on turkey and wine, take some time to fill up on relationships and who exactly your loved ones are. You might be surprised!
Also; an extension of this game came to me while writing this post, surely because it is the holidays (and I am in full festive mode). Perhaps the easiest decoration for any Christmas tree is cutting strips of paper and making a linked chain to wrap around the robust greenery. Cut those strips of questions, make them into a linked chain and hang them on your tree. When family gathers around to open presents take the chain down and one by one tear off a link, read aloud and let laughter and memories ensue.
Merry December!
1 comment:
You have hit the nail on the head with the pitiful truth about the obligatory holiday banter among families. I'm going to use your ideas to get some real conversation going this year.
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