There are those who suggest Christmas is largely for children. I suspect that suggestion comes from the fact we all came to know the holiday when we were small. As such, from our earliest days we keep a store of remembrance about the excitement and wonder and anticipation and joy of the season.
I daresay that Christmas is mostly about memories. There may have been one or two years in your past where the end of December brought a present so spectacular that is all you recall, but unless rich Uncle Elmo habitually leaves sports cars in your driveway at Yuletide, I would bet the majority of your recollections do not revolve around gifts opened the morning of the 25th.
Rather, the Christmas enshrined in reminiscence is a snapshot series of being with family and friends. And when you see those you hold dear, you refer to those snapshots. Remember when we stayed at Aunt Violet’s house and the pipe burst all over the basement floor where the kids were sleeping? Or when Cousin Tom surprised everyone in the neighborhood by caroling door-to-door with that Dixieland trio?
Do you recall the sweet, yeasty aroma that filled the kitchen when Grandma made sweet rolls? Or the night little Leon burst through the door, surprising everyone when he got a three-day leave from the service?
And do you remember how lovely the tree looked in the house you grew up in? Or how the older ones grinned from ear to ear as the little ones tore at the wrappings with shrieks of delight, and how they smiled again as they held those sleeping children later that day?
Tonight I’ll attend a party at the nursing home where I write a newsletter, hosted by the residents there for their families. Though moving a little slower, the oldsters will delight in the company of their dear ones. Dressed in holiday finery, family members tall and small will huddle close to share a meal as well as visions of Christmases long ago.
In some cases, they will also be forming the final Christmas memories of their aged loved one. Hopefully, the evening will allow everyone there to forget about the stress of where they have to be tomorrow and tomorrow, and focus on the holiness of being with those they love. If there was ever a fireside to warm a weary heart, the recollection of that loving togetherness is it.
Here’s hoping that you have had the chance to spend time this season with the ones you care for. And if not, here’s hoping you can give them a ring on the phone to say hello.
Maybe you can mention the Christmas-time recollection that pops up this time of year, the one that makes you long a little for the excitement and wonder and anticipation and joy you used to feel more of.
Here’s to happier Christmas memories for us all.
Pat Grimes, a former South Bay resident, writes from Ypsilanti, Mich. He can be reached at pgwriter@inbox.com
