A WONDERFUL LIFE

One of my favorite Christmas movies, my all-time favorite movie, is It’s a Wonderful Life. I’m sure I’m not alone here on this one. I see it mentioned over and over again on Facebook. I remember one Christmas the movie played continuously all night on Christmas Eve. I came home from midnight mass and stayed up until dawn wrapping presents and watching Mary Hatch and George Bailey fall in love.

Through the years I’ve collected all sorts of Wonderful Life related items. I have picture books, a board game, trivia books, and a few copies of the film. My most prized possession is my Bedford Falls Christmas Village complete with Mary, George, Clarence and Ernie’s taxi. Every year I set it up on the work table in my office.

This year I feel as though I’m living in the Old Granville House. Hopefully no one will throw a rock at my window! My house was built in 1932 and, like all older homes, requires a big maintenance job from time to time. This year it’s the roof. Remember when George goes to the house on his wedding night and the rain is pouring through the ceiling? I’m beginning to understand how he must have felt.

Today I’ve waited for hours for roofers who were to be here in the morning, but have yet to show. It’s dinner time now. I was fuming by the afternoon and had the phone in my hand when I decided to take a step back. What would my idol Mary Bailey do? Instead of being a George, which I admit I usually am, and going off the deep end, I conjured up the Mary inside me. I turned on the lights of Bedford Falls, made a cup of hot chocolate complete with whipped cream and chocolate chips, and watched a few minutes of the movie.

Life’s hard, 2020 has left us battered and bruised, but it’s also an amazing miracle. I may have a leak in the roof, but I have a home to live in and a family to share it with me. All time passes quickly, good and bad. Take a moment to breathe and remember this life is wonderful.