Not everyone celebrates Christmas. Here at TMV there are many religious variants from Christian to atheist, agnostic to eastern, mystic to Jewish. I even have a little of the latter in my bloodline, though my family and I live and regard and celebrate Christmas as a Christian family.
Like many, we have our own Christmas traditions. Our daughter developed a beautiful tradition of her own during high school. Each year she donates a holiday meal to a family in need. This year’s included turkey, side dishes and a pumpkin pie.
Christmas Eve is an extended family gathering, always at our home. When we lived in Arizona, we gathered family who were down for the winter, a group of about eight, to our home. This year we will have 15 or so. The final number won’t be known until we see who comes with whom this late afternoon and early evening. The meal will be as always, a Christmas ham, candied yams, scalloped potatoes, a salad or two and several pies to choose from for desert.
Gatherings will take place at the kitchen, in the living area and around the pool table in the game room. We will do our best to avoid talking politics or religion. But, somewhere along the way we will forget and touch on those topics despite our best efforts. The evening will close with a funny gift exchange. All gifts from the dollar store, no more. We will part with well wishes and good cheer.
Though our daughter is now 18, Santa will still come to our home during the night. Morning will see gifts beneath the tree beyond any that were there the night before, and surely more than could have been stored or hidden in the house. Opening gifts on Christmas morning is our time as a nuclear family. Only three of us, but beginning with stockings we will take three or four hours to open gifts and make cinnamon rolls, drink coffee and hot chocolate and, most and best of all, remember what it means to be part of a loving home.
We’ll take a short rest after gifts, but not much. There will still be Christmas dinner to prepare. That meal will include friends to share my wife’s home made lasagna. Special invitations will issue to those we know who are away from family or who may have no one with whom to celebrate Christmas. It is our way of sharing the spirit of the season.
So, whether you celebrate Christmas or not, please allow my family and I to wish you well in the kindest and most sincere spirit of the season.
Contributor, aka tidbits. Retired attorney in complex litigation, death penalty defense and constitutional law. Former Nat’l Board Chair: Alzheimer’s Association. Served on multiple political campaigns, including two for U.S. Senator Mark O. Hatfield (R-OR). Contributing author to three legal books and multiple legal publications.