Mom and I filed into the theater, surrounded by shorties dressed to the nines in velvet, tartan, and patent leather. We were, quite possibly, the only unaccompanied adults at the Children’s Theatre Company’s production of Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Mom and I are both suckers for anything Christmas-related, and when she offered to buy tickets, I thought it seemed like a fun way to kick off the holiday season.
The production was solid, but the audience stole the show. The tots gasped at the Grinch and his grinchiness, laughed at the goofy parts, and chattered about Max the dog. They wiggled and they giggled, and they clapped with delight. They asked questions at volumes far exceeding library levels. I hoped that their parents and grandparents had the perspective to see the magic of it all.
As a recently divorced woman with more than a little tick-tock of the baby clock, the festive scene could have seemed sad, but I found the experience utterly heart-warming. It made me excited to bring my future wigglers and gigglers to see a holiday show someday. And, being among so many families also made me nostalgic for the good old days with my brothers. Memories of claymation specials, Christmas pageants, and footie pajamas flitted through my consciousness.
After the show, we met Josh, my old-friend-turned-new-boyfriend, for a quick dinner. All in all, it was a perfect day, and the mission of getting into the holiday spirit was readily accomplished. It had been an incredibly difficult year, and I knew that I needed to let some things go and to let some things be. I’d taken a lesson away from the play. No—I didn’t think that my heart needed to grow to three times its size. It was plenty big enough to get me into trouble already.
The youthful audience was my inspiration. The kids didn’t have a plan beyond their next source of animal crackers. They lived life in the here-and-now, and they enjoyed the good stuff with such admirable exuberance. Like most responsible, law-abiding adults, I’m wound a little too tight to disregard past and future altogether. But, I was pretty sure that there was more room in my life for stand-up-and-clap joy—the kind that leaves little room for concerns of yesterday or tomorrow.
A most excellent post!
Thanks so much for stopping by on on my BON day!
I can’t believe I read the whole thing from beginning to end (with a small break to watch Gossip Girl). I hope there’s more…this is really great and I love your writing style!
xo Mary Jo
mary jo´s last blog ..lara stone’s nude lips
wiggler? or, giggler?
I’d like at least one of each.
I am standing up and clapping. This new chapter left me smiling, possibly because my grandkids have had the same effect on my life as those tots had on your holiday season.
BLissed-Out Grandma´s last blog ..The Easter Bunny came to visit…