It Came Without Boxes, It Came Without Bows...

Blue gift box, by Naypong, found at freedigitalphotos.net

"And the Grinch with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling.  How could it be so?  It came without ribbons.  It came without tags.  It came without packages, boxes or bags.  And he puzzled and puzzled 'til his puzzler was sore.  Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before.  What if Christmas he thought, doesn't come from a store?  What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more." - Dr. Seuss

 No real Grinches around here.  But people who are up to their necks in moving and haven't had the time to do the things that normally make us feel all 'Christmassy', yup we've got those. 
 I used to think that skipping all the decorating hoohaw and such might be just the thing.  I was wrong.  And a couple of weeks back I hit the dollar store and did a little instant decorating at the Palm Springs condo.  I also baked some cookies and mailed them to friends.  Haven't had the time to do all the things that make Christmas feel just perfect, but somewhere along the line Christmas showed up anyway.  Maybe it was when my good friend who is always short on funds sent me my favorite homemade peanut butter cups, even though I know she totally couldn't afford it.  Maybe it happened when my husband and I took the time to be silly and shop for crazy stocking stuffers like bacon flavored cotton candy for my nephew.  Maybe Christmas came when we decided that since we have to eat Christmas Eve dinner on the road, we will be leaving a great big tip for whoever the waitperson is at wherever we stop when the traffic gets to us.
 Whatever let the holiday spirit in, in the midst of our craziness, I am grateful.  And although the world is not all Christmas magic, just a little piece of the good side of humanity is enough for us this time around.