Ah, the winter holidays. That glorious time when hopes and wishes override past experience, when the forgetful again envision the season from Thanksgiving through New Year’s as a Hallmark flick, bright with good cheer and glad hearts. In your mind’s eye, you see Grandma baking pies in the kitchen, Mom and Dad wrapping presents in the bedroom, and the kids and Grandpa adding ornaments to the brightly-lit tree.
Top off these sugar plum delights with a blanket of fresh snow covering the lawn, and your Norman Rockwell painting is complete.
Then, reality takes a hand.
Grandma and Grandpa are stuck in Miami International, forced to camp out overnight in the airport lounge and cursing like sailors the last time they phoned you. Four-year-old Timmy thought it might be amusing to help the cat climb the accessorized tree. The twins are squabbling in the den over the remote, and your teenager sits sulking on the sofa, jabbing at her phone. Your spouse is sick in bed with the flu, and you’re so stressed, you cut your finger slicing oranges for your special festive cider….