yuletide's ending

i am listening to my favorite Christmas cd's one last time as i pack away the decorations. the turn around time to have the house ready for yet another big event is short. much like the holiday. the season is too short for me. always. it comes too quickly and leaves as fast! i am putting away the ornaments and Christmas china grudgingly. it will be almost a whole year before i see the nutcrackers and santas again. our beoved nativity. the paper mache angels. i love having them on display. i have sat, more than one evening in december, in the quiet of the house at bedtime, just drinking in the beauty of the lights reflecting off crystal icicles and snowflakes.
an amaryllis and two gorgeous poinsettias and some paper whites we planted in november will be the only holiday decor remaining by bedtime tonight. soon the wreaths and swags will be taken down and their hangers gathered to be stored once again. i keep the Christmas cards and letters in a wire basket until new years with the birthday and anniversary cards and graduation and birth announcements that tell the story of the year 2010 in our household. they will be tied with a wide ribbon and stored with those from previous year's, too, soon.
i have savored the season. enjoyed it in full, so i should not be so sad to see it ending...yet somehow i am