Shinn the Writer

Christmas Spirit

 

I didn’t know what I was going to write about this month until after the deed was done, but somehow that seems fitting. I refuse to recognize Christmas until after Thanksgiving. Usually I put it off until December is at least half over.

 

But this year I had some musical friends coming over on November 30 to rehearse for a couple of church functions we’re participating in, and I decided that I’d put out my Christmas wreath to welcome them. The wreath was easy enough to find. I keep it in my garage where I can ignore it eleven months a year but where it’s right where I can find it in December. And there is was, ready to slip right over a special hanger designed to drape over the top of my front door. The joys of my well-organized house.

 

So, I looked Inside my Christmas decorations box for the hanger and, well, there it wasn’t. I kept the decorations box out since I would be needing it soon enough, but that wasn’t what I needed at the moment. I needed the special hanger. I looked in the large, under-bed drawer where I keep the floor mat for my Christmas tree and a small number of other Christmas things. That number was one less than I needed it to be. Oh, where was it?

 

Fortunately, my house is small. Unfortunately, it seemed big enough to lose the hanger in. Or had I accidentally thrown it out? I went back to the garage looking in a couple of places that I might have foolishly put it, but apparently, I wasn’t that foolish. (Or smart. After all, I did think to look there.) At least while I was out there, I grabbed my Christmas tree and brought it in since my hands were empty. Good use of an otherwise useless trip to my garage.

 

I looked in various closets and cupboards and cabinets to no avail. It looked like a trip to the hardware store. Dang. Then inspiration hit. It was right there on my current to-do list, “label laundry room.” Not too long ago I had an accumulation of miscellaneous things that had accumulated in my laundry room and I found a couple of unused shoeboxes to throw them into. I put those boxes on shelf space I made available, and put labeling said boxes on my to-do list. I got two things out of this inspiration. First, that’s where I found the hanger (which used to serve the additional function of hanging my ironing board eleven months of the year until I replaced it a few months back with something better suited), I also saw a greater need to sort and label the unlabeled boxes in my laundry room!

 

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