A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away..... Hey, it worked for George Lucas, why can't it work for me?  I guess a more accurate opener would be: Here I sit, after a good show in northern Minnesota, recalling some holiday seasons of yester-year.  Several years ago, a drummer friend of mine in St Paul, MN came up with the idea of "Happy December."  This was not to be used as just a greeting to say to old friends as well as strangers on the street, but a whole month long concept to be put into practice starting December 1st and ending on New Years Day.  While I can't take any credit for coming up with this concept, I can say I subscribe to it whole heartedly.   

 I agreed with my friend that something about December just makes you feel hopeful and good, and that it is a time for making new acquaintances , re-kindling old ones, turning over new leafs, and taking measure of what you have gained and lost throughout the year.  His best description, and Im paraphrasing from what I can remember, was that the 12 months of the year are like a stair case. Some months you take a step up, some months you go down, sometimes its many at once, in both directions.  

But December was always the time to stop and realize that in a years time, you will always be higher up on the stair case than you were before, or the opportunity to get to a higher step would make its presence known.  If you listened to your soul, you could hear that good things were in store for it...big things....life changing things.  This was what made December always seem so magical, and it caught on with many many people that we knew.

The reason I stopped to think and write about it is that in Decembers past, the "Happy December" concept was just a welcome addition to my already high spirits and good nature I always seemed to carry inside me during this time of year. This year however, I have found myself dwelling on things I dont have, or cant have, or why things work out like they do, or why my way of thinking isnt always easily understood by others, right or wrong.  All that sort of put me in a funk, so much so that I had totally forgotten about Happy December.  

I think its easy for those of us who are constantly on the move, away from home often, or call many places home, to forget what really counts.  It's easy for myself and my fellow musicians who get stereotyped as unstable and unloveable to forget that stability and love are all around us, even if its not from the people we think or want it to be from. Sometimes, these things are right in front of our faces yet we fail to see it until it's too late, blinded by our own over-thinking, our pride, our emotions, or our fears.   

This year, my Happy December has true purpose for me, and I believe it includes adding up the things I DO have and being thankful, listening to and embracing the forthright and honest people in my life, and cherishing the generous amount of time I will have to spend with my family over the Christmas season.  

I encourage everyone to "get on board" and spread the word about "Happy December."  As a guy who was "on board" since its inception, this is a year I truly will utilize it to its full potential.   Make sure you stop and smell the roses (unless they are frozen, like they are where Im at), love often, laugh lots, and make sure you are doing things for the right reasons.  Take the extra time to evaluate how your decisions impact those you care about, because they often do more than you think.  And most importantly, check out that staircase you are on.  Realize where you started, and where you are now.   Use this special month to take chances and elevate yourself to the stair you want to be on.  The tools to do it are all around us, especially for the next 26 days.

As my friend Adam would say, "Happy December, you know?"

S.