Christmas Eve – Talk To Me Clarence

Christmas Eve – pause

As I continue to slowly watch “It’s A Wonderful Life” slowly as to make it last (old man pee breaks or just intentional walk breaks of the apartment talk to cats pauses) I am rapt again as I have always been since my first view, since, well, I can’t quite remember the since.

But I do vividly remember a day when, even though I had already seen it a couple of times I was excited about it being on again. The only problem though was that it was scheduled to air right in the middle of a Christmas Party we were going to at our new neighbors and new soon dear friends on Watermelon Hill Road in Mahopac, NY, the Rabuffo’s. I so wanted to just stay home and watch the clock. I even remember being pretty upset at the prospect of missing it and Mom not being all that happy with me because of this upset. “Oh Hells Bells Stephen! It’s just movie!”

But I eventually worked up the courage, after hemming and hawing in my head, to ask Mrs. Rabuffo if there was a place I could maybe watch the movie in some quiet, another TV, not the one in the middle of all the noise of this party, knowing exactly when it was to start.

Instead of telling me no, to just go out and play with the other kids, or that it would be rude of me to just ignore everyone and her big day she, instead, said she knew just the spot and led me to the TV in her and Mr Rabuffo’s room.

I sat on the floor, got comfy in a lean against their bed (even borrowing a pillow I made sure to put back just right) and watched getting wonderfully lost in the wonderful. Some of the other kids tried to join me or nudge me to give it up and come downstairs and go outside but it didn’t take long for them to tire of the boredom that was me and my complete joy. Thank you Mrs Rabuffo for the understanding of that 12 year old.

Well, back at it (we may have had the toaster, the wheel and sliced bread back then but we didn’t have the luxury of the DVD) … unpause.

Tell me things Clarence and you too Zuzu of angels and petals and bells and new wings.

Merry Christmas all