So Kristi tells me that I should write something today, something about festive goings-on that doesn’t involve whining about the move. Which I’ve been pretty good at doing this week.
So, Christmas.
It was never a big priority in my family. Dad had had some bad experiences connected to Christmas in his early manhood, so had abandoned the holiday for years; following that, the seventies, eighties and nineties found my parents shifting around in their religious faith a lot, with Christmas being celebrated sporadically at best in our house. Then they started celebrating Hanukkah in the early nineties, right about the time my brother and I moved out on our own. That pretty much brought Christmas celebrations in my family to a final halt. I have very thin relationships with my extended family, who all live far away; few of my friends celebrate Christmas much, either. So it just withered on the vine.
Florida also isn’t the place for a traditional Christmas. It’s still pretty warm in December. It’s crowded, and people move in and out constantly; most people here have never met their neighbors. The mass consumerism is out of control. Here in the Sunshine State, we’re a theme park surrounded by shopping malls – the holiday season isn’t much more than an economic event in Florida.
So over the last fifteen years, I’ve rarely done anything for Christmas. Never owned a tree, rarely bought (or received) presents, got used to it as just a day when absolutely everything was closed. I long ago stopped feeling much about it, one way or another. Just another day.
Recently Kristi asked me, when was the last time I remember actually going out and doing something for Christmas?
Umm.. I suppose the closest one would be 1999. I’d been living in Tampa for six months, hadn’t thought to stock the fridge, needed some food. The only place that was open was a China Buffet, so I went and ate Dragon Chicken and then caught a movie.
Kristi wasn’t sure how to respond to that.
So she assures me that I will have a proper Christmas this year, with lights and a tree and stockings and everything else. I’m looking forward to it. Not entirely sure what a traditional Christmas is supposed to look like anymore, but I am looking forward to it.