Twas
the first week of the New Year and all through the house there were ruined new
toys and a returnable blouse. The kids back to school with a long heavy sigh
and momma and me without guilt said goodbye.

The
take down of nativities and tinsel and trees and the sweeping and dusting while
crawling on sore knees. No more songs of the Yule could be heard through the
air, and quite frankly at this point I just didn’t care.

I
have to remove the outside lights from the gutters, and being a Christian I
can’t repeat what I muttered. The wife needs my help for the storage put away,
all the decorations I got out a month ago (but seems like a day).

Tis
already darker on our street as all the lights grow much dimmer, as the cold
creeps through and our anger doth simmer. This holiday of ours though festive
and bright, can never be complete without tension and fights.

There
are trips to the dump to throw cardboard in, cause apparently not recycling has
a become a new sin. January is here which is never that great, since it’s cold
and crappy and nothing to celebrate.

Did I
mention kids growing older and my youngest did bake, cookies for Santa, she
says she believes (but it’s fake.) My daughter though eleven is becoming a
young lady; she got her first bra and now daddy’s gone crazy.

My
son just fourteen about his grooming finally cares, and getting new clothes is
no longer that rare. As each old year passes and a new one breaks through, I
wonder of next Christmas and what we’ll go through.

What
will happen with boyfriends and girlfriends and driving of cars, and heartaches
and heartbreaks and breakups and scars?

While
momma and me grow older it’s true, the new years come quicker and the birthdays
do too.

Yet
while they’re still home parents and kids will recall, all the wonderful
memories that were had by us all. Though it’s a pain in the neck to put this
stuff away, I wouldn’t trade it at all for one single day. Yes it’s a new year
and I can say with a smile, what God has in store will be worth all the trial’s.
So go forth with hope and work through the tears, I can honestly say thank God
for new years.