Although my family celebrated Christmas each and every year really well, the one thing we didn’t really have, looking back, were Christmas Traditions.
I was thinking about it quite a bit recently after watching a million of those Hallmark Christmas movies. I started to realize perhaps it was because I had such a small family circle for a variety of reasons.
My dad’s side of the family were scattered all over western Canada and my mom only had two brothers, but were not very close at all. I even look at my own situation. Other than when we went to school, my two brothers and I have never lived in the same city and in one case not even the same province!
So these big family get togethers just never happened. I look at my current situation with both my kids all grown up. Every year since they were born we always had them home for Christmas no matter what, but now that they both live a province away and have jobs that have different demands, WE are going there to spend Christmas, and frankly it’s a bit sad for me.
Not that I don’t want to go or anything like that, it’s just that “it changed” I feel like the magic has gone away, much like finding out the real story about Santa. It’s just different and I am getting quite sentimental each and every year about most everything.
I truly envy people with big families who are all close and get along and keep in touch. I envy hearing them talk about all getting together and going as a group on a winter getaway. Having all the nieces and nephews know each other and get along with each other. Deciding whose house will host this years Christmas celebrations….I miss that and wish I could feel that unique joy as well.
Once again, even my nieces and nephews don’t live in the same provinces. Perhaps it’s just the way it goes with everyone growing up and starting their own families and moving for work or a variety of other reasons.
The one thing I am glad about are the memories I do have with my own kids. I will be the first to admit I always go waaaaay overboard with gifts, even after swearing I won’t. I’m like an addict and cant help myself. But you know what, I am so glad I did.
I think back at how much fun I had planning so many unique surprises for my kids and my wife, silly things perhaps at the time (like setting up a whole series of elaborate “booby traps” to catch Santa, and then realizing “now how am I going to be able to sneak presents under the tree?”)
Or the year I decorated the tree with dozens of packs of Pokémon cards (which I may add were like finding buried treasure the year they came out) or when we did a scavenger hunt and every stop contained a bit of American Money, which puzzled the kids, and little by little we added other things like a new suitcase and finally a pair of Micky Mouse ears with their names embroidered on them (I had a friend who went to Disneyland that July and I had him get them for me) and the surprise was a family trip to Disneyland.
As for traditions? I am not sure. There are things we do every year but I’m not sure I would call them a tradition. That being said there are two things that have always and hopefully will always be part of my Christmas. One is a silly cardboard manger scene my daughter made in probably grade 3 that we have always put under the tree. The other is our tree topper we affectionately call the “creaky angel” because it’s an angel that has its wings move apart and her little arm lifts a small candle while lit up AND it makes a creaking noise doing so. We have had that for probably 35 years and it still works like the day we bought it.
So maybe traditions aren’t that important after all…..I have wonderful memories of Christmases, not just with my kids but when I was a kid as well and the magic of Santa coming to visit me. If I can leave you with one thing I have learned….if you are able, go waaay overboard celebrating all the big things like birthdays and Christmases BUT also those little events. Every time my daughter lost a tooth she was super excited to put it under her pillow and the next morning the tooth fairy would leave her a new Barbie (we always had a few tucked away just in case) Yes I was financially fortunate to be able to do this and to this day my daughter always talks about that….but it doesn’t have to be a Barbie but it has to be something!
Time goes by us so fast, don’t let one opportunity to make a memory slip past. One of my favorite quotes of all time is from Mark Twain
“TWENTY YEARS FROM NOW YOU WILL BE MORE DISSAPOINTED BY THE THINGS YOU DIDN’T DO THAN BY THE ONES YOU DID”
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