Birthdays/holidays...celebrate them or ignore them?

[dixiegrrrrl]

5. "go clump with "..... I like that phrase.

I'll tell you what got me started on volunteering my time during the holidays.
Many many many years ago, in the late mid 70's, in Seattle, I was one of a group that started Seattle's Battered Women's Shelter. The house we used had only one person on staff at night.
I volunteered to be the weekend "on-call" person on New Year's.
And there was a fire at the shelter, no one was killed, but it was bad enough the residents had to be taken to the hospital to be checked out, then re-located.
There were children with their Moms, it was a hectic bit of business to get them all squared away.
Spent all New Year's Eve into the morning at the hospital making calls, re-assuring the Moms, etc.
I remember afterwards that I thought it was such a lucky co-incidence that I was available, since most of the other Board Members were out of town during the holiday, and someone from the Board had to be present to make arrangements and sign off on the funds for the emergency housing.
Of all the now 60 + New Year's Eves in my life, that is the one I still remember vivdly.