Dear friends, I’m sure you’re surprised to be getting a Christmas letter from me. I know I’M surprised you’re getting a Christmas letter from me, especially BEFORE Christmas. As you’ve probably noticed, I rarely get around to sending Christmas letters. (You DID notice, didn’t you?) I’ve always figured everyone would assume that no news is good news. Unfortunately, I’ve discovered that if SOME people don’t hear from you for a few years, they up and take you off their Christmas card list! I’ve had friends and relatives do this in as few as four or five years! So in an effort to get back in your good graces and back on your list, I’d like to join the fray of well wishers with this, my Christmas letter for 2007. (And possibly 2008, 9, and 10.) Anyway, it’s a good time to write a Christmas letter, because 2007 was a good year for our family right from the start. In January, I found the keys I lost shortly before Thanksgiving 2006. Let me tell you, that was a happy day! Hopefully in next year’s letter, I’ll be able to report that we found the missing library book and the long-lost sweat pants. (Even if there ISN’T a letter next year, I hope we find them.) We all had our teeth cleaned again this year, and we’re very proud that none of us had any cavities. And we had no major catastrophes either, other than that one little mishap with my garage door, which we don’t need to discuss right now. We had no big car repairs or remodeling projects either, which is surprising after the garage door incident. And we skipped spring cleaning altogether in favor of a more relaxed approach to home care: Not doing it. This has worked well so far, other than the ant infestation, which may or may not have been related to an open bag of pretzels left on the basement floor. But who could blame them? On a happier note, we enjoyed several wonderful family trips this summer. The only downside was that, to live within our budget, we were forced to stay in "affordable" hotels. As you know, this can mean paying a high price in lack of amenities (air conditioning, sleep and personal safety). We love to travel, but it can be so expensive. This leads me to ask: could we stay with you sometime? We also managed to fit in one camping trip this summer and it was fabulous. We had a lovely, relaxing time; the peace and quiet of the forest disturbed only by the sound of our truck’s alarm going off in the night – twice. We finally broke down and bought our son a pet this year. He had desperately wanted a dog; I was leaning toward a Chia pet, so we compromised and settled on a hamster. Hamsters aren’t particularly affectionate pets; there is very little tail to wag. But they are low maintenance and ours has been hardly any trouble at all, other than the two times he escaped. As you can imagine, this was quite traumatic for everyone – except the hamster. That pretty much sums up 2007. When it comes to adventure and excitement, it was a fairly typical year for our family, which might explain why I don’t send Christmas letters more often. But I want you to know that though I haven’t written for lo these many years, I think of you often and sincerely wish you and yours the very best of everything in 2008 and beyond. Now would you please put me back on your Christmas card list?
"Around the Bend" appears regularly in the Advocate and about 15 newspapers in the Midwest, including the Rapid City Journal. Rosby, Rapid City, S.D., lives with her husband and school-aged son. For more on Rosby, visit www.dorothyrosby.com.
