Holiday letter

 

Another year gone by … another holiday letter

By Debra L. Karplus

It’s now signed, sealed, and delivered.  I’m referring to my latest holiday letter.  I emailed it to a couple dozen or so family members and out-of-town friends who presumably want to hear the family news and what I’ve been up to.  If not, then, they can hit their “delete” key. 

I want to believe that my recent “dear family and friends” letter, like my previous letters, is more about telling and less about bragging, but sometimes it’s difficult to sort that out.

Overall, I’d say it was a mostly good year.  I wrote about some of the visitors I had who arrived by car, train, Uber, bus, or plane.  My brother and wife came for a day and it was lovely.  My son came with one of his three sons, all the way from Utrecht, just outside Amsterdam. That was super special.

I wrote about not one but two visits from my Southern California daughter; one visit was with her husband and three children.  She’s a children’s author and came for a book tour here in Champaign-Urbana.  Their trip coincided with my birthday.  Wonderful visit.  Her other visit was solo to attend a weekend of events for her University High School 30 year reunion.  How blessed I am that family members were willing to travel off the beaten track to get to Champaign-Urbana and see me and some of the amazing sites and restaurants C-U has to offer.

Soon after my letter went out I received a few from recipients.  One told me about his new pacemaker that was just inserted because his doctors discovered that though he doesn’t have sleep apnea his heart sometimes just stops. He also has some form of “man cancer”.  Another friend quickly responded to my holiday letter with details of the bad leak in her house that required her and her husband to temporarily move out of their home while repairs were occurring and also that her sister-in-law, a non-smoker, has tongue cancer.  Frankly, I’d never heard of that.  Perhaps that’s why the dentist and periodontist check my tongue at each visit!

This got me wondering if my holiday letter possibly wasn’t honest enough because my relatively good year included some darkness.  A dear friend’s 70-something husband who I knew well, died of pancreatic cancer after a brave 2 year fight, during the summer.  And I frequently hear about other same-aged friends who have a variety of unpleasant illnesses.  When in one’s seventies, it’s tough watching the impact of the aging process on peers, many of whom take excellent care of themselves.

A close family member in her 40s was diagnosed with CML, chronic myeloid leukemia.  It’s rare and neither genetic nor lifestyle-related.  The medications which are essentially chemotherapy in a pill can cause icky side effects, such as nausea and skin issues.  Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has CML and is a national spokesperson for it.  He’s looking rather healthy and fit these days so that’s great inspiration for others with CML.  When managed, people with CML can live a long healthy life.  Much money is going toward research toward cures for diseases like CML.

Two relatives lost their seemingly secure jobs.  One is nearing retirement age, and though not ready to retire, found himself dumped from his long time job working in New York for a major broadcasting network; he’s opted to take a lower-paid job with their new management.  Another family member who has a new PhD, a new bride, and a home became a victim of government worker cutbacks and was furloughed. I’m not sure what his “Plan B” is. 

I did have a visitor here for a few nights who was less than the ideal houseguest.  I’ll spare you the details and will save them for some future commentary about rudeness.

Thank goodness for the Eastern Illinois Foodbank.  I’m pleased to give them some money annually.  No one needs to give me any pat on the back.  I’m able to eat anything I want, but many, because of circumstances simply can’t.

There are many deniers of climate change, but look at all the crazy, scary weather disasters in the US and other places.

And the political divide in this country?  Well don’t even get me started because friends know I refuse to talk politics with ANYONE!

When it comes to holiday letters, I’m more of the Reader’s Digest kind of person.  I just want to write the positive, feel good stories.  Save the drama of the National Inquirer for some other writer!