Home for the HOlidays

On the way home from work I shot a quaint country home decorated for Christmas along Barnett Shoals Road in Watkinsville. I shot a bracketed exposure to try a little HDR for this sunset photo. -- Old south countryside white homestead decorated with wreaths lights and Christmas decorations. Home for the holidays. Watkinsville, Oconee County, Georgia, USA

​​Tuesday, 5:31 PM – In the former days, when extended families still lived together on the family farm, “home for the holidays” simply meant that everybody was there, it was a day off work, and nobody traveled. Today, many of us no longer live in the immediate area of the rest of our family. Therefore, “home for the holidays” means stuffing suitcases and pushing through crowded airports. Going home means navigating jammed highways and following GPS directions to our destination. But at travel’s end, we enjoy a time of merriment with our families.

For others, “home for holidays” might not be as joyful a phrase. Many will miss a loved one because they won’t be home, whether for just that holiday, or forever. It can be a phrase that evokes sadness at the holiday season.

Three years ago, a friend of mine lost her second husband. She had been widowed many years before but later in life found another man, a true gentleman, and love was rekindled. This new husband, after only two years of marriage to my friend, suffered a tragic heart attack while the two were driving on the highway just before Christmas. Since it was one of Steve’s favorites, she chose to have the song, “I’ll be home for Christmas” played at his funeral. Now, whenever I hear that song, I think of Kristy and Steve and how he won’t be “home for the holidays.” But…

There will be a time that we truly can go home for the holidays; a joyful occasion where we will be reunited with those family members that we haven’t seen in long passages of time. Even if the present holidays bring us sadness, we can look forward with anticipation to a glorious reunion. This world is not our home. There exists a lasting, permanent home beyond this one. But just as important as the GPS on that drive to the family Christmas party, be sure to follow the road atlas to that eternal home!

​Oconee County, Georgia
Partly sunny; high 65°, low 54°
Sunrise 7:33 AM, sunset 5:27 PM
Day length: 9 hours, 53 minutes
Moon: 1% waxing crescent