Christmas Stories: Day 17

Every day ’til Christmas, we’re sharing a story from your family at FN. Would you rather get them straight to your inbox? Click here and choose “Christmas Stories: (Daily Emails Dec 2015).”


Tradition is the fabric of which my life is woven. I can remember special trips to Hancock’s to buy a shiny ribbon of color for my fresh-pressed ponytails, and special moments as a child—from picture day at school to the annual Easter morning moment when my brother and I would recite ‘speeches’ we’d been practicing at home. There were Friday evenings with my parents, as my brother and I would run around Murray’s Lock and Dam Park – greasy lips and all – after we’d eaten Chinese take-out from our favorite restaurant in the Heights. And then, yes. Yes. There was always Christmas.
FullSizeRender
A green-mittened Santa waved ‘Hello’ from our front door for many years. He was the kind of faux-felt paper figure with pin-holed arms and legs that moved. My mom had taken a brown shoe-polish bottle and diversified the old Kris Kringle; first she rimmed his eyes and then finished his entire face. A white resin tree (that was surely older than me) studded with plastic, red pegs glowed from our living room table. I still have it, though it glows no more – too many pieces of electrical tape adorn it now. Downstairs in the den, our tree stood next to our fireplace and hundreds of little newspaper logs that my mom had made with thread. The tree was adorned with her handmade velvet bows as well. They were replaced intermittently, as she desired to ‘change it up’ over the years. There was the annual Christmas Eve drive to look at lights down at the Capitol and along winding streets off Kavanaugh. And who could forget sitting in traffic to creep past the nationally-known Osborne light display?photo (1)

Christmas was and still is my favorite time of year. The traditions of my childhood have become the foundation upon which I am building more memories with my own kids. Let’s see, there are the Christmas Eve ornaments they receive – usually a hint of what the morning will bring them. There are the cards – the result of two anguish-filled hours out of every December – during which we take pics for our Christmas yuletides to all those we love. A box of metallic, gold, wire-edged ribbon from our wedding comes down from the attic – it trails our big tree with special touches and memories from the day we became one. I say ‘big tree’ because it is one of many that are perfectly situated about the house for some special reason or another – with an antagonizing Russell ‘ba-humbugging’ somewhere nearby. And last year, a cute little elf began making his way to various vantage points in the living room, as Jon-Jon runs around each evening leaving him M&M snacks, while Russ makes ‘footprints’ in dusty surfaces.

During this time, I think a lot of my grandmothers. They were such a huge part of every Christmas in my life. I can remember lying in bed with my Granny, Hannah Lewis, as she challenged us to go to sleep as fast as we could. Her finger would wave over our heads to ask if we’d heard something on the roof above. My amused eyes would glance over at her with a smile, just as my brother sank beneath the covers—clearly terrified. Or my grandmother, Willie Mae Seay, who’d go out on her property and chop down her own tree, which she ‘swagged’ out like ole Charlie Brown and his best buds. Every year, my mother and I would take one Saturday to hang with her, as she wanted to go to ‘town,’ and buy every child, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, grandchild, and great grandchild a gift. She’d spend the next few days amassing piles and piles of newspaper-wrapped tokens of love – chittlins’ wafting through the eves. And a lamenting duck was about to be prepared for his crash-dive landing in a massive pot of her dressing. Oh, how I miss them, so.

photo (1)When you are small you don’t realize that some Christmas traditions are only for a season. The gleam in beaming little eyes on Christmas morning is something I wish I could find on a shelf at Target. Christmas Wonder, it would be called and could even have a scrumptious fragrance–something like candied-cinnamon cider apples. It’s the magic gift-giving is made of…it’s the element of innocence…it’s the joy of Christmas. This is what we sit and discuss on Christmas Eve as we read Luke and recount the moments around Christ’s earthly debut. He is the ultimate gift, we tell the kids, the gift that keeps on giving.

So, when the Christmas commercials drift back into advertising files until the following September; two or three black bags of wrapping paper sit at the curb alongside a fallen tree shivering with bits of tinsel amidst browning pine needles; and Christmas hustle and bustle has given way to determined resolve about the proceeding new year—it is the memories that we will take with us until it’s time to do it all over again. That, and the everlasting, overwhelming gift of His love which carries us the whole year through.

 


photo (2)Today’s story is by Melia Mason.

One aspect that Melia didn’t mention is that Charlie Brown and his peeps really do live somewhere on a fictional street in America, in her mind. A street where you can still hear the piano trills of the shedding little Christmas tree and Pig Pen has still not mastered personal hygiene in time for the annual play. She absolutely loves the Peanuts clan, her Stevie Wonder Christmas CD, the stuffed Grinch that hangs from her rear view mirror each year, her husband, Russell, and their three elves: Drummer Boy, Josh, 13, a sugarplum fairy named Aijilán, 11, and a little wise man, Jonathan, 6.

xosotin chelseathông tin chuyển nhượngcâu lạc bộ bóng đá arsenalbóng đá atalantabundesligacầu thủ haalandUEFAevertonxosofutebol ao vivofutemaxmulticanaisonbetbóng đá world cupbóng đá inter milantin juventusbenzemala ligaclb leicester cityMUman citymessi lionelsalahnapolineymarpsgronaldoserie atottenhamvalenciaAS ROMALeverkusenac milanmbappenapolinewcastleaston villaliverpoolfa cupreal madridpremier leagueAjaxbao bong da247EPLbarcelonabournemouthaff cupasean footballbên lề sân cỏbáo bóng đá mớibóng đá cúp thế giớitin bóng đá ViệtUEFAbáo bóng đá việt namHuyền thoại bóng đágiải ngoại hạng anhSeagametap chi bong da the gioitin bong da lutrận đấu hôm nayviệt nam bóng đátin nong bong daBóng đá nữthể thao 7m24h bóng đábóng đá hôm naythe thao ngoai hang anhtin nhanh bóng đáphòng thay đồ bóng đábóng đá phủikèo nhà cái onbetbóng đá lu 2thông tin phòng thay đồthe thao vuaapp đánh lô đềdudoanxosoxổ số giải đặc biệthôm nay xổ sốkèo đẹp hôm nayketquaxosokq xskqxsmnsoi cầu ba miềnsoi cau thong kesxkt hôm naythế giới xổ sốxổ số 24hxo.soxoso3mienxo so ba mienxoso dac bietxosodientoanxổ số dự đoánvé số chiều xổxoso ket quaxosokienthietxoso kq hôm nayxoso ktxổ số megaxổ số mới nhất hôm nayxoso truc tiepxoso ViệtSX3MIENxs dự đoánxs mien bac hom nayxs miên namxsmientrungxsmn thu 7con số may mắn hôm nayKQXS 3 miền Bắc Trung Nam Nhanhdự đoán xổ số 3 miềndò vé sốdu doan xo so hom nayket qua xo xoket qua xo so.vntrúng thưởng xo sokq xoso trực tiếpket qua xskqxs 247số miền nams0x0 mienbacxosobamien hôm naysố đẹp hôm naysố đẹp trực tuyếnnuôi số đẹpxo so hom quaxoso ketquaxstruc tiep hom nayxổ số kiến thiết trực tiếpxổ số kq hôm nayso xo kq trực tuyenkết quả xổ số miền bắc trực tiếpxo so miền namxổ số miền nam trực tiếptrực tiếp xổ số hôm nayket wa xsKQ XOSOxoso onlinexo so truc tiep hom nayxsttso mien bac trong ngàyKQXS3Msố so mien bacdu doan xo so onlinedu doan cau loxổ số kenokqxs vnKQXOSOKQXS hôm naytrực tiếp kết quả xổ số ba miềncap lo dep nhat hom naysoi cầu chuẩn hôm nayso ket qua xo soXem kết quả xổ số nhanh nhấtSX3MIENXSMB chủ nhậtKQXSMNkết quả mở giải trực tuyếnGiờ vàng chốt số OnlineĐánh Đề Con Gìdò số miền namdò vé số hôm nayso mo so debach thủ lô đẹp nhất hôm naycầu đề hôm naykết quả xổ số kiến thiết toàn quốccau dep 88xsmb rong bach kimket qua xs 2023dự đoán xổ số hàng ngàyBạch thủ đề miền BắcSoi Cầu MB thần tàisoi cau vip 247soi cầu tốtsoi cầu miễn phísoi cau mb vipxsmb hom nayxs vietlottxsmn hôm naycầu lô đẹpthống kê lô kép xổ số miền Bắcquay thử xsmnxổ số thần tàiQuay thử XSMTxổ số chiều nayxo so mien nam hom nayweb đánh lô đề trực tuyến uy tínKQXS hôm nayxsmb ngày hôm nayXSMT chủ nhậtxổ số Power 6/55KQXS A trúng roycao thủ chốt sốbảng xổ số đặc biệtsoi cầu 247 vipsoi cầu wap 666Soi cầu miễn phí 888 VIPSoi Cau Chuan MBđộc thủ desố miền bắcthần tài cho sốKết quả xổ số thần tàiXem trực tiếp xổ sốXIN SỐ THẦN TÀI THỔ ĐỊACầu lô số đẹplô đẹp vip 24hsoi cầu miễn phí 888xổ số kiến thiết chiều nayXSMN thứ 7 hàng tuầnKết quả Xổ số Hồ Chí Minhnhà cái xổ số Việt NamXổ Số Đại PhátXổ số mới nhất Hôm Nayso xo mb hom nayxxmb88quay thu mbXo so Minh ChinhXS Minh Ngọc trực tiếp hôm nayXSMN 88XSTDxs than taixổ số UY TIN NHẤTxs vietlott 88SOI CẦU SIÊU CHUẨNSoiCauVietlô đẹp hôm nay vipket qua so xo hom naykqxsmb 30 ngàydự đoán xổ số 3 miềnSoi cầu 3 càng chuẩn xácbạch thủ lônuoi lo chuanbắt lô chuẩn theo ngàykq xo-solô 3 càngnuôi lô đề siêu vipcầu Lô Xiên XSMBđề về bao nhiêuSoi cầu x3xổ số kiến thiết ngày hôm nayquay thử xsmttruc tiep kết quả sxmntrực tiếp miền bắckết quả xổ số chấm vnbảng xs đặc biệt năm 2023soi cau xsmbxổ số hà nội hôm naysxmtxsmt hôm nayxs truc tiep mbketqua xo so onlinekqxs onlinexo số hôm nayXS3MTin xs hôm nayxsmn thu2XSMN hom nayxổ số miền bắc trực tiếp hôm naySO XOxsmbsxmn hôm nay188betlink188 xo sosoi cầu vip 88lô tô việtsoi lô việtXS247xs ba miềnchốt lô đẹp nhất hôm naychốt số xsmbCHƠI LÔ TÔsoi cau mn hom naychốt lô chuẩndu doan sxmtdự đoán xổ số onlinerồng bạch kim chốt 3 càng miễn phí hôm naythống kê lô gan miền bắcdàn đề lôCầu Kèo Đặc Biệtchốt cầu may mắnkết quả xổ số miền bắc hômSoi cầu vàng 777thẻ bài onlinedu doan mn 888soi cầu miền nam vipsoi cầu mt vipdàn de hôm nay7 cao thủ chốt sốsoi cau mien phi 7777 cao thủ chốt số nức tiếng3 càng miền bắcrồng bạch kim 777dàn de bất bạion newsddxsmn188betw88w88789bettf88sin88suvipsunwintf88five8812betsv88vn88Top 10 nhà cái uy tínsky88iwinlucky88nhacaisin88oxbetm88vn88w88789betiwinf8betrio66rio66lucky88oxbetvn88188bet789betMay-88five88one88sin88bk88xbetoxbetMU88188BETSV88RIO66ONBET88188betM88M88SV88Jun-68Jun-88one88iwinv9betw388OXBETw388w388onbetonbetonbetonbet88onbet88onbet88onbet88onbetonbetonbetonbetqh88mu88Nhà cái uy tínpog79vp777vp777vipbetvipbetuk88uk88typhu88typhu88tk88tk88sm66sm66me88me888live8live8livesm66me88win798livesm66me88win79pog79pog79vp777vp777uk88uk88tk88tk88luck8luck8kingbet86kingbet86k188k188hr99hr99123b8xbetvnvipbetsv66zbettaisunwin-vntyphu88vn138vwinvwinvi68ee881xbetrio66zbetvn138i9betvipfi88clubcf68onbet88ee88typhu88onbetonbetkhuyenmai12bet-moblie12betmoblietaimienphi247vi68clupcf68clupvipbeti9betqh88onb123onbefsoi cầunổ hũbắn cáđá gàđá gàgame bàicasinosoi cầuxóc đĩagame bàigiải mã giấc mơbầu cuaslot gamecasinonổ hủdàn đềBắn cácasinodàn đềnổ hũtài xỉuslot gamecasinobắn cáđá gàgame bàithể thaogame bàisoi cầukqsssoi cầucờ tướngbắn cágame bàixóc đĩaAG百家乐AG百家乐AG真人AG真人爱游戏华体会华体会im体育kok体育开云体育开云体育开云体育乐鱼体育乐鱼体育欧宝体育ob体育亚博体育亚博体育亚博体育亚博体育亚博体育亚博体育开云体育开云体育棋牌棋牌沙巴体育买球平台新葡京娱乐开云体育mu88qh88

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *