Driving Slowly Down a Road

I knew my husband was a little irritated that we were driving 20 miles to see a street famous for wonderful Christmas lights. While we were waiting to turn left, he pointed out a house with icicle lights and family of blinking snowman.

"That doesn't count," I said.

He grimaced and turned left.

The excitement Josie and Owen had for seeing the lights faded after the first ten minutes.

"It's too far," Josie said.

"I'm hungry," Owen said.

"We're almost there," I said. "This is going to be so much fun!"

The truth was, I had no idea what this was going to be like. I heard from a friend that Eucalyptus Rd. in San Carlos was THE place in the Bay Area to see Christmas Lights. And I am a sucker for Christmas Lights.

I think it reminds me of the street where I grew up. Every night during the holidays, the families lit up the gigantic trees in their front yards. I remember how special it felt to drive slowly down the road where for once no one was in a hurry and every one was mesmerized by the beauty of the twinkling lights.

Finally we arrived in the neighborhood and as soon as we pulled around the corner to Eucalyptus Rd., all of us were unanimously in awe.

Lights shone from shingle to shrub on every inch of every single home on the block. Some homes had themes. Some were chaotic. But every single one of them made you feel the christmas spirit from head to toe.

As we pulled towards the end of Eucalyptus Rd., there was a house on the right with lit up sesame street characters and the house on the right with orangle lights and an SF logo in the window.

Josie and Owen squealed in delight and waved to Elmo and Cookie Monster. Norm stuck his arm out the window and yelled, "Go Giants!"

I breathed a sigh of relief. Something for everyone, including me, who was just happy to be sharing the tradition of driving slowly down the road where for once no one was in a hurry and everyone was mesmerized by the beauty of the twinkling lights.