Not for the time spent with family, or the food, or the parties. No, I love this time of year because of the quiet.

...

I drove into work on Friday and there was not another car on the road for most of the drive. The phones did not ring off the hook, the other offices on our floor were empty, the world was calm. Oh I am sure that the malls were full of madness and the grocery stores were war zones, but I had already prepared for the long weekend to come and had no need wade into the morass of panicky last minute shoppers.

There’s a tradition in my office that we start the New Year with clean slates. All bills paid, all papers filed, everything down to the garbage is emptied and sorted and put in its proper place. We left early on the night before the night before Christmas, and we knew that when we came back on Tuesday, there was nothing pending, no looming deadlines, nothing of urgency to get done. It made for a very peaceful few days.

When I came back to work on what most of the western world considers a holiday, the road was empty. Not even a jogger in a Santa hat to be seen. I greeted my boss and we shared holiday stories, knowing that it was just the two of us for the day. There was no mail to collect, no invoices to post, there wasn’t even another car in the parking lot. We nibbled on various holiday munchies and puttered away at this and that in companionable silence, and by one in the afternoon we were both on our way home.

The rest of the day passed in a pleasant blur. I made the leftover turkey into something besides grilled havarti and turkey sandwiches, I baked, I tidied, and I felt as though I was on a sort of mini vacation. I even got some writing done, both on my current novel and with a friend who was somehow managing to be bored while on vacation in Mexico. So bored she was eager to write instead of lounge on a beach in the sunshine. (I fear for her sanity, really I do.)

The rest of this week will likely be the same, quiet days, restful nights, visits from friends and family. For me it’s a time of renewal, a time to rest and prepare for the coming of the new year. 2011 was amazing, I accomplished things I never dreamed of and some I had promised myself for years I’d get around to. 2012 is going to be an amazing year too, despite the doom and gloom and predictions of Armageddon.

I hope the coming year brings everyone more laughter than tears, more good days than bad, and accomplish at least one thing that’s on our bucket list.