UNITED STATES—It is likely one of my favorite holidays of the year, next to my birthday. I’m referring to Christmas. I don’t know what it is about the holiday that just puts me in such a good mood. Is it seeing the Christmas decorations at my favorite retailers? Could it be the holidays songs that just bring joy and happiness into the homes of so many Americans? Could it be the foods that become staples as the holiday fast approaches. The homes in the neighborhoods that are decorated or could it be the spirit of giving that jumps to the top of the list.
Perhaps it is all those things because I know it can be an extremely tough time of year for people who have lost loved ones or who are disconnected to a degree by family. The holidays are all about family to me, spend as much time as you possibly can with the people that you adore, appreciate and love in your life. Yes, you can show gratitude by getting them a gift, but I feel you understand the importance that time is the one gift that is priceless because once it is gone you can never, and I mean never get it back.
I sometimes wish I could rewind back time to when I was a kid and not fret or whine about having to spend time at my grandparents house for the Christmas holiday, especially since neither set of my grandparents on my mother or father’s side are still with us.
My mother used to prepare a feast, and I mean feast of food for us kids on Christmas it was like the works on steroids. We would have pancakes, waffles, orange juice, apple juice, fruit, donuts, bagels, muffins, Danish, eggs, bacon, sausage, and so much more. It was like we were at a buffet only I didn’t have to leave the house.
Kids nowadays have no clue of what it was like growing up in the 80s and 90s, where you weren’t posting on social media every single thing you got for Christmas. You celebrated with a picture from the Polaroid camera or from those old home movies where you were horrified by the clothing you wore or that your parents forced you to wear. Could you imagine sitting around the house for hours or most of Christmas day wearing your PJs, playing with all the toys you got and having this insane desire to open every single present, even though you really didn’t have to do it to begin with.
There is nothing like fresh snow on the ground, and where I grew up it snowed just about every Christmas. Hell, I’ll never forget that one Christmas where we got like 10 inches of snow on Christmas Eve. Yeah, you would be stuck with family even if you didn’t want to because the roads were not plowed and the snow literally spilled over into the Christmas morning, making travel treacherous and quite dangerous to say the least.
You snuggle up to hot cocoa, cookies listen to your favorite Christmas tunes and for me it was always watching “Die Hard” when wrapping gifts. Don’t ask America, the movie just puts me into the mood and that’s just how I roll when it comes to Christmas. We all have our traditions, and I’m not changing it anytime soon. Things just get more fun when your city has that annual tree lighting and the opening of the ice-skating rink that gets more people outdoors and enjoying the holiday season. Christmas may not be the most festive time for all Americans if you’ve lost someone very close to you but surround yourself with those who do care so you can bring a little bit of cheer to your life.
