Stumped...

I want to write a holiday story. I like writing holiday stories. It enhances my holiday spirit.

But...

This year is really difficult. 

It's weird to write a story from the "before times" and writing one in the "now times" hasn't sparked any sort of creative process (yet, I'm still noodling, it might) and I'm not really sure what the "after times" are going to look like so that's not happening either. 

They finally lined out the Oregon timeline the other day for vaccines and (as long as the supply stays strong) with their estimate of how many people they can inoculate a day we are looking at September before everyone is vaccinated. September. Another 10 months away. So what does next Christmas look like? 

Will it be overflowing with parties and events and people just so glad to get out that everyone is on full blast? Or after a year and half of quieter living will people decide they prefer it that way? Or with the number of people that will still get sick and die before that happens will people still be grieving too much to want to celebrate? Or will the economy still be in such precarious shape will people even be able to afford big celebrations? Not to mention the open cries for secession from certain forces in our political arenas (most recently the Republican Party of Texas). What will the country look and feel like in a year?

So it's hard to find a good toe hold into a holiday story.

Yet.

Like I said, I'm still noodling. 

And I kind of feel like that's everything right now. 

We're still thinking about it.

Trying to find a way to make it work.

We have a lot of forces working against all of us right now.

The virus. The divided country. The normal differences that happen in daily life that are just amplified right now.

We're all still trying to figure it out. 

It's weird to step back sometimes and realize how significant this moment in history already is and how we are on the verge of possibly even more. I mean, we all studied the 1918 pandemic in school. It seemed unbelievable that world wide flu could be that bad. Something out of the dark ages. In 100 years when people are studying this they will have the added "Meanwhile in the United States people protested wearing a mask" portion. I cannot even imagine how that's going to be explained. "But why?" "Who knows, Sparky, who knows."

But then again, if the people trying to dismantle our country right now succeed the history lessons will be...well who knows what they will be. 

It's been so overused this year but we are in unprecedented times. 

We are just under 6 weeks away from the presidential inauguration and Trump still hasn't stopped fighting the election results. Cult45 is still backing him even though it's clear that he lost. He lost in every way you can lose. But he's got them convinced that because he lost there must have been something shady going on. Yes, yes there was, but it was you and your family and all of the other grifters you brought along for the ride. And again, we have multiple fronts calling for a split. Sedition. Out in the open. Under the banner of being a good Republican. It's unprecedented.

So...I'm trying for a holiday themed story but it's not there yet. Maybe some songs would help?

Have Yourself a Merry Little Treason

Angels We Have Barely Heard Through Masks

I'm Dreaming of an Orange Free Christmas

Silver Mask, Silver Flask, It's Christmas Time and It's Shitty

Maybe not...

I'll keep working on it.