Weekend update, December 10, 2012

The world is full of magic things, patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper.”
― W.B. Yeats

and who would know better than an Irish poet what magic is, and where it may be waiting? Hmm... I wonder what  magic his dreamy-sharp Celtic soul would find in the craziness of  Christmas.
Because, ready or not....
And. I really do wonder what people mean when they ask, on the 9th of December, "Are you ready for Christmas?"
"Define", I mentally reply, "ready".
(To answer with actual words would be quite pointless, because no matter what the definition of ready is, I am pretty sure that I am not ever, on the 9th of December, that.)
This morning, (thanks Steve) I heard the next two weeks brilliantly described as a luge ride-
you know, this thing-

a bone rattling, teeth shattering hurtle
toward the finish line.
Kinda crazy. Kinda terrifying. Kinda fun.
It's a mental image that'll keep me grinning til
Christmas eve. 

And this year, we have friends along for the ride! Southern Hemisphere friends, who've travelled from afar to experience the wonders of a Northern Hemisphere Christmas.
And wonders, as they often do, abound.
So far, we've introduced them to the American Christmas wonders of Walmart and Costco and Hobby Lobby, and a few of these

and today, this:

Northpark at Christmas.
Former Dallasites, I'll hand you a tissue
while you grieve your loss.

If you let your senses grow sharper, just a little, and look again at that crowd, you may see a bit of magic.
Has it ever occurred to you, as you stood in the middle of a Christmas crowd, that nearly everyone there would rather not be there? They, like you, would rather be....oh, I don't know, laying on a beach, walking in the mountains, snoozing in a chair in front of the TV....
 Except they're not. And you're not.
And do you know why?
Because everyone there loves somebody very much and wants very much to please them.
Take that lens with you to the mall, and look at the crowd through it. See if it works the same magic for you that it does for me.
As  far as the week's food, I can offer you the following updateyness.
We'll start with the very least magical, which ironically involves the first entry in the holy grail of chili recipes search-off.
The Southwestern Meatball Chili. As it turns out, adding a tablespoon of chili powder to meatball soup does NOT turn it into chili, no matter HOW much kitchen magic one may possess. Fortunately, our Antipodean travelers had not yet arrived-  how I'd have cringed/laughed/apologized had this little pot of disappointment been anyone's first meal in America! The two of us put on our game faces, and ate a bowlful, but I knew no one would go for seconds, and the leftovers would languish. This is the only picture I took:



right after I tipped it into the bin.

The chicken lasagna was tasty, though it's not a very healthy thing- it's loaded with cheese and cream. But then, I thought it'd be a safe bet for a group of unfamiliar appetites because, you know, it's loaded with cheese and cream.
With cooked chicken, it prepped in less than half an hour, but took about an hour to bake.
And tonight, with a bit of magic that's an awful lot of fun for me to practice, this

turned (shazam!!) into this:

We put the soup together with some sliced barbeque brisket and the whole meal was together in half an hour.
I wonder what's up for tomorrow?!

And you know.....
Sometimes I read that Yeats quote, and I wonder. If the world is full magic that waits for us unnoticed (and I've never known Yeats to not tell the truth)  what is it, I wonder, that dulls us.
Maybe  sometimes it's all the things that rush at us. All the demands and expectations and appointments and disappointments. Maybe the harder they bump into us, the duller we become.
It's a crazy time to wish this, but I hope that this week, against all odds, it's not that way for you.
I hope with all my too often unsharp heart that this week love and hope sharpen your senses until you feel yourself alert and alive to the wonder that surrounds you. The wonder of loving, and of being loved.
because I'm pretty sure that whatever magic it is that waits for us,
it's love that's casting the spell.