Good-byes

The house is so quiet.  I had planned to spend the afternoon putting Christmas decorations away, vacuuming the dog hair and grit from the floor, stripping sheets off the kids' beds, the guest-room bed, the pull-out couch.  (We had a full house here last night.)  But I know that when I get up from my spot at the kichen table and begin all those tasks, it will mean that the holiday we've had together really is over.  When I went to bed last night, around 11:30, Henry and a couple of high...