DIRECTOR'S NOTES
Whenever I think of the holiday season, my two favorite movies come to mind. The first kicks off the holidays, as we watch "Elf" every Thanksgiving weekend. The second marks the pinncale of the holidays for my family - Growing up, we would attend Christmas Eve Services, have a family hors d'oueuvres buffet (always including smoked oysters, lobster, port wine cheese ball, Hickory Farms Summer Sausage, Phillipino Eggrolls, pigs in a blanket, and sherbert punch...plus much more). After the feast, everyone could open one gift. This time was magical, but my favorite part of the evening was when we would turn off all the lights (except the tree) and we'd all snuggle down to watch "It's a Wonderful Life".
Two years ago, I thought I was going to miss this important holiday tradition - My mother had been visiting us and became gravely ill. For two weeks, she was at UAMS in isolation. By the time Christmas Eve arrived, we were all exhausted from early morning visits to the hospital, working all day, and returning to the hospital every evening. At 9pm on Christmas Eve, she was moved from the hospital to an isolation unit at a local rehab center, where she would spend the next 90 days. It was nearly midnight when I pulled in our driveway, and I was ready to collapse into bed. But, Richard had other ideas - My sweet husband had downloaded "It's a Wonderful Life" and had it ready for viewing, along with some of my favorite snacks and a nice glass of wine.
Mom eventually made it out of isolation and now resides at a Memory Care Center in Florida. While she no longer has the ability to carry on our tradition, directing this beautiful show is my way to honor this decades-long memory, and countless Christmas Eve's snuggled up with Mom watching "It's a Wonderful Life"!
Merry Christmas, Mary White!
