It All Passes By So Soon

The first Christmas kiss 'neath the mistletoe ball

Love that grows with the winter moon
The hopes and dreams of two people enthrall
It all passes by so soon.

Newlyweds' bliss on a new Christmas morning
Their hearts are now one, not two
The anticipation of the life they are forming
It all passes by so soon.

Baby's first Christmas such a joyous sight
With boxes and bows and balloons
Sweetly slumber that holiday night
It all passes by so soon.

Little kids' toys under the tree
That will litter the floors of their rooms
The little ones sitting on Santa's knee
It all passes by so soon.

Teenagers who wince and roll their eyes
Wish for high-tech not heirlooms
Dread helping mom make Christmas pies
It all passes by so soon.

Young adults come and bring their new spouses
Rush off before it turns noon
To celebrate Christmas in their own houses
It all passes by too soon.

Grandchildren visit on Christmas Eve
And sing happy holiday tunes
But before long they must leave
It all passes by too soon.

That first Christmas kiss 'neath the mistletoe ball
Love that grew with the winter moon
The hopes and dreams of two people extolled
It all passed by too soon.

Christmas Cookies

I spent the better part of the last two days making batter and dough for a barrage of Christmas cookies and confections.

By the time the cookies were made, my kitchen looked like a winter wonderland, covered in white - wintry and powdery. Trees, snowmen, snowflakes and fluffy pillowy mounds as far as the eye could see, covered our domestic landscape. Unfortunately, 'twas not snow nor the things that holiday songs sing of, but alas a messy, sticky mixture of flour, powdered sugar, baking soda and baking powder - and dozens and dozens of sweet snacks.

The two day long process of preparation for this baking blitz dragged on and on. One mundane baking task after another slowed the flow of the weekend down to the speed of molasses. Mixing, folding, stirring, sifting; whisking, washing, wiping, sweeping - one job after another until finally it was baking time.

With the help of my daughters, we carefully chose the best cookie cutters to use that would flatter our cookie platters. Frenzied flouring of cutting boards and rolling pins made way to carefully planned out arrangements of the cookie cutters. Onto the pans, into the oven, and up on the cooling racks went our cookies. In what seemed like a few moments, we had used all of our dough, and the baking was complete.

In all, the baking took my girls and me about 2 1/2 hours to complete. But because I was in the company of my precious daughters, I lost track of the time. What would have seemed like an eternity in the kitchen had I been by myself, passed by in the blink of an eye. I was lost in the enjoyment of seeing their creativity, cooperation and Christmas spirit.

Each year this tradition in the kitchen with my daughters passes by so soon. But the memories will live on forever, of my girls and me, baking Christmas Cookies.