(bitter)sweet

As far back as I can remember, this particular week of the year has always seemed very bittersweet to me. Christmas is over. My birthday is over. (Those two days I would wait for all year as a child, over and done; two days in a row.) Christmas break is almost over. The year is almost over. There was still the lingering happiness of the holidays, but it just always seemed like everything was over. That childhood sadness still gets to me a little bit every year.

This year, somehow, it's a little bit different. The bittersweetness is there, but just as an undercurrent. This year, there seems to be more sweet than bitter.

Maybe it's the brightness of the snow that's fallen over the past three days. ( I love love love snow.)

Maybe it's the deer that have decided to eat from our bird feeder each morning at 5:30.

Maybe it's the Hubby Decree that the celebrations that started last week will, in fact, last a full week.

I'm not sure how or why. But it's different. More sweet. Less bitter.

This week I'm luxuriating. Sleeping in under flannel sheets. Hot cups of tea and a stack of new books while curled up under a warm quilt on the couch. Lunches with friends. Dates with Hubby. Eating too much. Running in the snow. Watching deer eat from the bird feeder.

I'm enjoying these moments that don't come nearly as often as they should. Or maybe they come and I'm just too busy or distracted to notice them.

This week I'm not thinking about what next week brings. I'm making memories that will make me smile when I think about them next week.

I'm letting the bitter slide away and enjoying every single sweet moment that this week-long celebration brings.

(And it's working.)