I am sitting here, listening to the quiet sounds of my sleeping house. The soft glow of my newly hung Christmas lights have made this insomniac very happy. I am filled with fond and funny memories of Christmases past... And I have been able to reflect upon the sheer strength that a single day can hold.
Why is it, exactly, that the Christmas season is so stressful? So anticipated? So dreaded? So... Much? How does this time of year bring out the worst in people, when the entire purpose is the complete opposite?
Perhaps it is knowing that the memories our children will retain from their youth are scattered. How many of us can honestly remember more than a handful of "normal" days before we turned 8 or 9? I can bet you that most of us DO remember the holidays, though. The smell of my mom's lasagna or fried smelt on Christmas Eve... The feeling of walking into our finished basement and seeing the huge, old-fashioned lights glowing midst the heaps of tinsel... Seeing my grandpa (Papa) sleeping on our old black-leather chair, the baseball bat that he always teased he was going to whack Santa with (I know, crazy, right?) held loosely in his hands....Knowing that this day, this ONE day, would be documented with photos, video, and visiting relatives....
I believe it is our fear of our children not remembering the daily activities that we do with them, that stresses parents out at Christmas. I know that I have many memories of Christmases where things weren't so wonderful.
The year my Papa passed away, just a few days before Christmas. My sisters and I made most of that Christmas dinner ourselves, as our mom was planning her father's funeral...
The year all 3 of my children were sick, with Justin throwing up at the Christmas dinner table, Evan unconscious through the unwrapping of gifts and Corinne ending up in the emergency room from dehydration after deciding to quit nursing cold turkey and contracting the flu simultaneously...
Or the year they were all healthy the big day itself, but suffered for almost all of Christmas vacation with the flu....
But it's the good memories that outweigh the bad. It's watching my husband dance with our daughter by the light of the tree.
It's the ordinary days made into something special, just because it's December....
I am surely guilty of forgetting the purpose of the season, and focusing on the wrong things at Christmastime. I have fallen into the spend-spend-spend! trap. But the things that my kids really like about the holidays? The memories we have made with traditions that aren't expensive. Filling the house with lights and music. Tromping through a local tree farm together to pick out our tree. Decorating sugar cookies until the icing is properly coated with crunchy sweetness.
These are the special memories my kids already have. These are the things they are holding dear. All of the "perfect presents" bought with debt would never come close to the joy they will remember of spending time together, as a family.
This is my mission statement, this holiday season:
Create memories of love and joy, not clutter and debt.
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11 comments:
you rock.
I love your mission statement. On the one hand, I think that stress during the holidays is unavoidable (helloooo, family!) but I think it's important for the adults to keep it in perspective. The "memory making" magic of Christmas is mostly cinematic, I think. It used to be when we would get the cameras out, but now we do it every day.
I agree with you whole heartedly!!! Christmas is what you make of it - I too am stressed, but that is because Money is tight this year, But When we start Decorating our tree to the "Elvis Christmas Album" - the traditions will start flooding back in!
Very Nice Post. But, you'll still be buying ME a Christmas Present this year, right?
My Mom simplified Christmas twenty years ago and I've tried follow her lead with my own family.
what a beautiful post, great message!
I think I'm going to steal your mission statement. Hehehe. Great post.
That's my mission for the holidays this year as well.
What a great post you had here, loved the part about the kids throwing up at the table. Now THAT's a memory that you'll rehash every year! LOVE those memories. (not the actual throwing up of course, just the funnieness of the whole thing when it's over) lol.
You're a good mom.
I love your mission statement! And this whole post is awesome. You have totally hit the nail on the head, Tracey!
That is wonderful. I was trying to compose a Top Ten post in my head the other day of my favorite Christmas presents and honest to goodness I can't remember more than one or two. But like you said, I remember so much more about those holidays. The food, the family, the laughs, the tears. Definitely something to think about when I agonize over what gifts to give.
Here, here. Sounds good to me -- we're definitely going with something along those lines this year -- especially with moving (this weekend!) and the new baby in January -- it just doesn't make sense to blow the money on xmas when you really don't need to.
ooooo i just love that!!!!
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