Post Game Comment on Christmas…..

I’ve had a few people ask me “how did the Community Christmas Eve Dinner work out?”. Excellent question and thanks for asking! It was 48 hours of shock, awe and total chaos, sprinkled with enough magical moments that I am now a true believer in miracles.

For those that are new to the story line, the Community Christmas Dinner Eve dinner was something that our family started a few years ago. We rented a hall and opened it up to anyone who wanted to share the spirit of Christmas with community on December 24th. The meal was free although people were welcome to donate. In past years, we have served up to 170 people along with some extra “to go” packages. A COVID Christmas was very different. We weren’t able to gather and yet, this year, the need to “connect” was greater than ever. Christmas 2020 felt lonely. If we couldn’t bring people together, we could figure out how to deliver a bit of Christmas with a delicious dinner.

Typically, we would serve a full turkey meal. Nothing about 2020 was typical so we simplified and chose to offer a ham dinner with veggies, dinner buns and a selection of Christmas treats. Along with dinner, we gave everyone a gift bag that included soft socks, lovely chocolate, a homemade gingerbread man and a Christmas orange. With this new approach, I felt confident that we could deliver 150 meals. All was calm until the numbers started to climb over 200 and chaos took hold. I started to spiral with panic.

Have you ever done that? Started something with all good intentions and realized part way through that you were in some serious trouble?

First confession. I hate to cook. I know, the irony is not lost on me. I struggle cooking for our family of 5 and yet I still chose to pretend that I could be a Christmas caterer. There was also a small matter of finances. With growing numbers, came growing costs. Yup. I was totally in over my head.

Whenever I get overwhelmed, I find calm in spreadsheets. Spreadsheets make sense. There is order and I like the automatic formulas and being able to bold things and highlight other things. My spreadsheets are like maps to a traveler, they give direction and an overview of the journey.

My first task was to figure out how much food was needed. This is where I love Google. “Hey Google, how many vegetables do I need to cook for 250 people?”. Google was obviously as perplexed as I was because the answer was rather unsatisfying. Siri had put an “out of office” alert when I tried to reach her with the same question.

Since I didn’t know what I was doing, I closed my eyes and made my best guess. I ordered potatoes, beets, parsnips, carrots, brussels sprouts and yams for a total of 600 pounds. I also included 12 hams at 13 pounds each and a 50 pound roast beef. Since everything is better with butter, I made sure to have 20 pounds on hand along with plenty of maple syrup, sour cream and whipping cream.

In my head and on my spreadsheets, I thought it would all work. In the middle of the night, I wondered how long it would take to peel all those vegetables who would help me make the desserts?

Under new health parameters, it became clear that I would have to rally my volunteers over two days to ensure the necessary physical distancing. My biggest fear was delivering dinner with a side of the COVID.

The Clearwater Ski Lodge was generously donated to us and we would have plenty of space plus a big kitchen. On December 23, I arrived early with the car loaded. Even though it was “just vegetables”, 600 pounds of veggies still made the car sag and I did worry about the damage that might occur as I drove over the speed bumps. THUMP, THUMP was concerning. I kept my eyes closed. Everything seems to be fine when I keep my eyes closed.

By 10am, the first wave of volunteers arrived and the peeling began with a frenzy. At 11am, the second wave flew in and started filling the gift bags. The phone started to ring and more orders started to arrive. How do you say “no” at Christmas?

Once the peeling was complete, the chopping began. We ran out of bowls, we ran out of counter space and then we ran into some trouble. There were two sheet pans and one oven. All my spreadsheets had negated a key question. How was all of this going to be cooked in less than 24 hours? Houston, we have a SERIOUS problem.

Here’s the recap. Dinner requests have now reached 290, I have 600 pounds of veggies, 12 hams and a roast beef and there is no way that one oven will cook all of this. I have been made aware that we don’t have enough socks for everyone and I have run out of money. Great.

This event was born out of a belief that everything works out and the mantra has always been “fishes and loaves, fishes and loaves. It will be ok“.

Sometimes I have moments of brilliance and in this case, I called a friend who actually knew how to cook and asked “could you please help me“. She arrived like the Christmas Star and took over the kitchen.

We borrowed three roaster ovens for the hams and a local restaurant owner called down and said “come use our convection ovens“. Miracles.

A woman walked into the lodge gave me an envelope and said “this is from my mom. She wanted to donate.” The second wind of miracles sparkled. I ran to the local store to buy more socks and the belief that it would be ok took hold amongst us all.

Despite a reprieve from stress, chaos still ensued. There is no other way to describe December 23rd. We shuttled vegetables all day between venues to get things cooked and cooled. It was 6.40pm and we were packing the first half of the dinners and realized that we would need another 100 pound of potatoes. OMG! The store closed at 7pm and a I made a mad dash.

My friend Shirley (another angel) arrived with a trunk load of Christmas treats and a desserts. We laid it all out and carefully made up the first round of dessert boxes.

At 11.30pm, we locked the doors and said good night. It wasn’t the Tour de France or the Iditarod, but it felt like it. The first half of the race was done.

On the 24th, a new cast of volunteers arrived. The final pounds of potatoes were peeled, cooked and mashed and all the last to go containers were filled, labeled and packaged. The phone rings again and 12 more meals are needed. Sure, what the heck.

My last Christmas challenge was finding someone who could make a delivery for a family that lived in a small northern community, almost an hour away. Who could I get to drive that distance on Christmas Eve? More miracles ensued. I put out the call to all those who had raised their hand to volunteer. One woman replied saying that her husband had passed away in November and she was looking to make a difference. When I put out the subsequent 911 for a long distance delivery she emailed and said, “I will happily do this drive. I used to be a long haul trucker“. My skin tingled as I read her reply. Miracles comes from all directions.

The final wave of volunteers arrived in masks. We loaded the delivery bags, consulted the spread sheets, double checked the delivery details and sent everyone out the door. Somehow, we crossed the finish line just in time.

I knew I wanted this dinner to be meaningful but there were some hurdles. Things like, I didn’t know how to cook, I didn’t know how much food we would need and I certainly didn’t have the money to pay for it and I wasn’t sure who would help and yet….. the stars aligned and the magic was had. Over the two days, we saw over 30 volunteers and somehow raised in excess of $5,000 to serve over 291 meals. The gentle spirit of Christmas arrived, dressed as abundance and joy.

I sat down and pondered about how it had all come about and how it all came together. I wondered if this was possible, I wonder what more could be done?

The pandemic has been divisive and harsh. World events show chaos, cruelty and a sense that evil has taken a foothold. Special interest groups are gaslighting issues that are causing us to to question leadership, intent of decisions (or lack thereof) as well as wondering about faith in democracy, social values and even humanity. I wonder if I am alone in asking “who can I trust?” along with “what can I trust to be real?”. I feel afraid. Hollywood and world politics don’t seem to be too far apart.

This past week we watched a President tell his supporters to “fight” to stop the “steal” of the election while his personal lawyer, called for “trial by combat” which led to an insurgence of violence that desecrated what I always saw to be the Holy Grail of freedom and democracy. Has everything been a lie? I felt an urgent need to replay the Matrix and contemplated if I would fit into a leather suit like Trinity. Probably not.

I settle down and find calm as I reflect back to the Community Christmas Eve dinner and what it meant for everyone involved. Volunteers came and felt joy at being part of something bigger than themselves. The ache of being apart was replaced by coming together to give. Funders were keen to make a difference and gave generously. Those receiving meals were reminded that they were part of a community that cares. My favourite envelope held $4 in change and a note that said “thank you”. Everyone folded into a warm winter blanket that posed as love during a COVID Christmas.

There are more good things in the world than bad. I choose to believe this with all my heart. There is a beautiful story line that still exists in our every day life and each of us have a role. Small acts of kindness cause ripples of goodwill, moments of kindness build connections and gestures of generosity make the improbable possible.

My post game comment on Christmas? I used to see Christmas as something that happened at the end of the year. What I saw this year makes me think that maybe Christmas is actually the beginning and sets the stage for the year to come.

I feel immense peace when I think about a year filled with beautiful moments, random acts of kindness and more love. Imagine what could happen if we extended our embrace to include more parts of our community.

It can feel dark but for 2021, I am going to keep the lights on. I am going to choose to see the positive while holding the vision all that is possible if we act with the collective good at heart. We need our dreams and we need each other. Small steps taken with open hearts. After all, a ripple creates a wide circle.

Here’s to more magic and miracles.

With love,

Shelley