Relative Something

Things aren’t the same for me as they used to be. I’m the same guy, but the way I saw Christmas as a kid is completely different than the way I see it now. When I became a parent and had the opportunity to establish Christmas memories for my kids, I don’t know that I had a distinct awareness of the situation. I don’t recall overtly nurturing for my children, what my childhood experience had been. Now, from the added perspective of having my children grown and out of the house, I think I’ve become more like Scrooge than ever before. First, I complained that it was too soon to start decorating and advertising the holiday. Next, the focus of it all has become way too materialistic. Yet still, I harbor the greatest memories of the Christmases of my youth.

Memories like the wall covered with Christmas cards and children’s artwork, which is only a memory because of a slide photo my father took. The trees, tall enough to reach the ceiling. The project of decorating the trees, particularly the lead tinsel my sister, Judy, mentioned. The year we put our name in lights –at first it said, “Ho Ho” but for a short time was modified to “Hays”. The morning my father had me easily convinced that he just heard reindeer activity on the roof, moments before we made our first appearance, Christmas morning. He was so sincere, I fell for it, hook-line-sinker. …The time my siblings fooled me by taping the record album to the cover of the box I opened, so I found nothing but tissue paper in the box below. …Andy Williams and Bing Crosby Christmas albums.

It occurs to me that regardless my miserly personal opinions of late, about this holiday, I might want to cut others a reasonable amount of slack, especially kids. I think kids today deserve to feel just as excited about all things Christmas related, as I ever did. They don’t know it’s coming earlier, or been co-opted by the retail juggernaut and broadcast media. Why, it’s as if I have been visited by the ghosts of Christmas, past, present & future. Let’s enjoy chestnuts roasting on an open fire.

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!