Love, Full Circle

If you love someone put their name in a circle not a heart, because a heart can be broken, a circle goes on forever. — Brian Littrell

As the holidays approach I think of my Mom in her kitchen, busy making delicious dishes while simultaneously watching Christmas movies on the Hallmark Channel. I would tease her about this.

Mom, these shows all have the same plot.

Mom, these movies are farcical.

Mom, this show was just on. Why are you watching it again?

She took it all in stride. Mom loved the Hallmark Channel. In typical monkey-see, monkey-do fashion, I also became a fan of the Hallmark Channel. Who can resist the predictable storylines, the far-fetched romance, and my favorite part — the happy endings!

This year there is a new Christmas movie that I happened to stumble across. It’s the second part, a follow-up if you will, to a movie that aired in 2014. I remember watching the first movie with my Mom. I can’t even tell you how silly this movie is! Still, I can so clearly remember her, my sister and I, all busy in the kitchen and watching the original movie together. So when the new movie aired a few weeks ago, I just had to watch it.

Part of the new storyline includes grieving over the mother of the main character, who has passed away. The two sisters were doing their best to move on, yet there they were together on Christmas…reminiscing over an Advent calendar created by their mother. I don’t want to give away the plot, but there was a line that stood out to me. Love, full circle. No beginning. No end. Just love. The sisters talked about their mother making wreaths and how they symbolize love, full circle. This was a trademark characteristic of their mother. Mine, too.

I’m not going to lie. Part of the reason I continue watching Hallmark movies is the same reason I started in the first place, it’s because of my Mom. I’m grateful that they remind me so much of her and honestly, it makes me feel close to her still.

She would have liked this new movie, she would have watched it a million plus times, and I would have teased her about it.

Love, full circle.

Empty Chairs, Everywhere is a personal grief diary as I process the loss of my Mother to COVID-19.