Ho Ho Hello!

It SOUNDS like December out there. How can I tell? Radio stations playing constant Christmas tunes. Retailers shouting out sales. Revelers celebrating with holiday parties. The list goes on and on. This time of year, the noise can be deafening.

When did the holiday season become so hectic and harried? Has it always been this way or am I just more tuned in to all the noise this year? Why are we rushing and racing through this annual celebration? If your life is like mine, December is already becoming a blur of endless “to do” lists, buying to excess and missing entirely the real reason for the season. That said...I have decided that this year I'm making different plans.

This year I intend to seek out a very meaningful present for myself: The gift of quiet. Simple, elegant, and all too elusive quiet and for those of you who know me well I can just imagine your laughter right now because as you know quiet is something I am NOT famous for.

So what do I mean by the gift of quiet?

It means that starting today I am going to do my best to tune out some of December's noise and trade it in for time to reflect, remember, and rejoice. My drive time will be spent driving.....not listening to the radio or talking on the phone. My evenings will be spent without the intrusion of TV and instead, whenever possible, curled up with a good book. Rather than multi-tasking my way through the month, I am going to try and slow down, in order to find some quiet and create new family memories with the three best Christmas presents I could ever ask for: Scott, Chase and Nick.

As December makes its debut today, so do two projects near and dear to my heart: Lunchmeat & Life Lessons: Sharing a Butcher's Wisdom is now available in a collectors hard cover edition AND as a three cd audiobook. CLICK HERE to listen to an excerpt.

I'm grateful that so many of you nudged me in this direction, and I am very proud of the finished product. Please remember this BOOK  as a treasured gift for anyone on your list this year. And for yourself, as you look for something to inspire during YOUR quiet time!

May life’s simplest pleasures bring you abundant joys this season. And my heartfelt thanks for your support.

Mary B. Lucas, B.D.