Good day to you.

It’s the 19th of December, and it doesn’t feel like Christmas to me yet.  It seems that as I get older, the years go by faster and the anticipation that I used to feel really disappears.  I am saddened by this, becuase I used to really savor the month of December. 

Maybe it’s because everything is so much easier these days – after all, when I wanted to buy gifts as a kid, I was severly limited as to where I could go.  I couldn’t just hop in the car and go to whatever mall was closest – it was a family trip to Kmart.  Having money saved up was also different.  My parents would start reminding us at least as far back as early November that there was planning to be done – we would draw names with the cousins to see who got whom, and then we were responsible to save enough for a decent gift (under $5, though) for that person. 

I usually managed to draw or trade for my cousin Walter, and the thing that he seemed to like the most in the world was Mountain Dew, so I would buy him a 12 pack and wrap it up.

Not the most festive of gifts, I suppose, but he really appreciated it.  And it felt like it meant more, somehow.  Nowadays, gift shopping is more of a chore than a joy.  It’s still fun to think about what people might want, and I like wrapping gifts, but the more important aspect by far is getting together with friends and loved ones. 

It doesn’t seem like Christmas should be the only time we see certain people.  Maybe this year I will work to change it so that Christmas warmth and cheer gets spread more evenly through the rest of the year.

Good night. Sheila