Memories of Past Holidays

The holiday is fast upon us! It seems harder and harder to get that "holiday spirit" as I grow older. Something recently triggered many memories of holidays long ago. We chose to sit in the dark...only lights on the Christmas tree to light the room. I have to admit there is something magical about that setting. Memories of past Christmases flooded back.

The trees we had, picking them out, decorating (something we were more involved in when old enough), placing strands of lights, silver icicles, ornaments. Lights were very different then. There were santas, snowmen, candles, flowers and fruit, little houses covered in snow. I miss those lights, now just solid colors that blink, don't blink, chase. Ornaments like bells, shapes with multi-colors, less interesting than ornaments now...but that there is still a warm spot in my heart for.

Presents piled high, dwarfing the tree...even though my parents were not "wealthy", but solidly middle class. And always the gifts from Santa, unwrapped and beckoning on Christmas morn.

My grandparents celebrations were very different. Dad's parents had lights and ornaments older than I was, always on a pine tree. I never asked, but imagined this is the sort of imagine they had from childhood, at the turn of the last century. And again, the presents were plentiful. As they were at my Mom's parents house. The real difference was the tree. Not pine, but aluminum and complete with color wheel. At my Dad's parents, we were the only guests as he was an only child, so we were the only grandchildren and the focus of attention. Mom is one of four, so the crowd was usually much larger and noisy.

The celebration at my Mom's parents was always Christmas Eve and while cold, it was either dry or raining. I spent many Christmas Eves hoping for snow, or just some flurries...I wanted that white Christmas more than almost any gift I got (almost). But a white Christmas in Oklahoma was pretty rare. And is still rare. Moving to California really took snow out of the mix. Here in Oregon the chances are better, but not likely. I'm still waiting for a really white Christmas.

But the memories of the days long ago (my god, it WAS long ago) warm my holiday. And this year, we begin to build memories for a little boy. Memories that he will look back on, we hope fondly, in another 50 years.