Good Will Among Aliens & The Alienated

Saturday I balanced atop a rickety ladder to pull six to ten boxes of Christmas decorations down from the attic. Among the treasures I recovered was a large balloon which, according to a note on it, we’d put up there in 1997; after nine years it remained fully inflated.

Ginny & I decided to hang it up as our outside decoration this year. Usually we arrange a display in our yard, but we just lack the energy to try that this year so we are just going with the balloon. It’s shaped like a green, round-headed space alien and it carries a sign declaring “Earthmen Have Been Visited – Merry Christmas”.

In my mind this display hints at the Incarnation of Christ, God imposing self-discipline on Himself to come down to earth – you know, the sort of thing I wrote about in Friday’s blog. Ginny thinks my idea for a display is too esoteric to get across to most passers-by. She’s probably right, but like I said, we lack the energy to string exterior lights and do a more elaborate display. Besides, our decorations are for our own pleasure, who else pays attention?

Here’s a photo of some of our front yard decorations last year:

Now in this season of peace and good will, for some reason Ginny & I were at odds all day Saturday. It was one of those rare occasions when nothing I did pleased her and when I found her aggravating. Know how it is when you introduce a new kitten in the house to your established cat? Well, we circled our house like those two cats, observing the formal courtesies but estranged and leery of eachother.

I have no idea what caused this alienation. It’s easy to blame it on external circumstances. I’m antsy from being so far behind in my work; Friday she’d just finished writing the annual report in her office. We both feel that we’re treading in deep water just to meet normal daily obligations and duties so the added activities associated with Christmas overwhelm us… Or maybe, the tension was physical: her blood sugar being off; my sleep depravation…. Or maybe some demon picked today to goad us … Or maybe, we’re getting sour in our old age… Who knows?

It was one of those times when we had to say, “I love you forever, but I can’t stand you right this minute”.

You know, just part of the normal cycle of being in love but having to live under the same roof. (We’ve observed that there is a cycle to that rhythm of life).

Anyhow, we acknowledged that we were having a bad day where we were not meshing as usual, and we moved on from there.

In the evening we watched a video tape of O Brother Where Art Thou and enjoyed it thoroughly.

When we woke up Sunday morning the tension was gone and we resumed our normal intimacy. Ginny arranged our manger scene (We’d bought that when our honeymoon began almost 40 years ago and in all that time only one piece got chipped) while I played with toy soldiers beside the tree.

I also added to the festive atmosphere of our home by gracing the bust of Shakespeare on the bookcase with a Santa hat.

Cool!

We sorted presents and wrapped a few while listening to Christmas music and enjoying flickering candles. We ate lunch at a yuppie sandwich shop where we paid more for soup and a sandwich than we normally pay for a full dinner at a real restaurant (never going there again). We shopped for groceries and a few additional presents. We watched football on tv snuggled under one blanket with her head nestled on my shoulder.

So maybe it is the season of peace and good will among couples, and Saturday we just hit a Grinch glitch.