My Christmas, how I love you

I had another blog post that was nearing ready to be published, but it decided to play Houdini on me and disappear. Maybe it was a sign for me to post about something else, or that I should stick to blogging on my phone, rather than my laptop. With this being the holiday season, I found it more appropriate to talk about why I’m in love with it. Since the time I was a kid, Christmas has been one of my favorite times of the year for several reasons. 

Family This Christmas should be a memorable one for the Harris clan, because everyone is coming home to visit with their spouses and children. I love having my parents, brothers, and sister under the same roof. Everyone is grown now, but having us together brings me back to the times when we were a family of six living together. Playing video games with my brothers, being roomies with my sister before growing distant in separate rooms, Mom running a daycare in our home, and Dad being in and out of the house in army uniform. I appreciate those days because I remember not having a care in the world. I think it’s safe to say that we all crave for days without worrying about paying rent on time, paying off student loans, worrying if your significant other is being faithful, how you’re going to survive work, or fearing that you will lose your child whenever they leave the house. 

I’m ecstatic to have the family together this month. This Christmas marks the first time that I will see my youngest niece, Avery, for the first time. If my sparkling personality doesn’t win her over, then maybe my resemblance to her dad/my brother will. 

Friends As I mentioned before, I consider myself a loner. I like and respect people, but I value my alone time just as much to relax and reflect. If I call you my close friend then you must be special, like my best friend Bianca. She and I have been friends for two years ever since I first made her laugh on Snapchat. I don’t remember what I did, but I’m fairly certain her reaction was along the lines of “You crazy fool”. Since that time I have come to appreciate her because she cares to hear what I have to say, even if it’s just me acting a fool or talking about my trivial thoughts. The morning after I lost my pet Oreo to death, I was in my bed crying, not even wanting to get up for church. My eyes were aching and pink. The back of my head was throbbing, and my throat was sore from all the wailing I had done. Bianca wasn’t there in person to comfort me, but just having her on the phone was enough to calm me down; pull myself out of bed; and go to God’s house. In the hopefully not so distant future, I hope to visit her in her hometown and spend a couple of days with her to get to know her more. She’s an amazing friend.

Gifts It’s not the receiving I enjoy, but moreso the giving. It’s always fun, if not challenging, looking for something to get loved ones. This year I am spoiling my nieces and nephews who are all coming to visit. I look forward to seeing the looks on their faces when they open their gifts, because out of all four of them, I rarely see three of them due to long distance and a busy schedule. What better time to see them all than on Christmas.

Decorations The day or so after Thanksgiving, my family breaks out the Christmas ornaments; lights; figurines; and tree. The only downside to this is having to remove every statue, picture, book, and magazine from the furniture to make way for the decorations. Maybe this year if I wasn’t texting, it might’ve taken me at least 30 minutes instead of an hour. The time was totally worth it to behold a new tree dressed with old and new ornaments; wrapped in white lights, a multicolored light up star on top; and artificial snow, which I vacuum up from the floor every Tuesday and Friday. 

Traditions One tradition my family has been doing for years is on Christmas Eve, when we drive around neighborhoods to see all the houses dressed with Christmas lights. Seeing the city aglow like many stars in the sky can make even the roughest neighborhoods look extravagant. To all the parents, driving around light gazing with your children, who are anxious about opening up their gifts the next morning, is a good way to put them to sleep. Funny, 24 years old and I still doze off when riding in a car for a long time.

Christ I am very well aware that Christ was not born on December 25. As far as I know there is no known date of his actual date of birth. And I’m aware of the pagan origin and aspect of the holiday, but regardless of all that, Christmas reminds me of Christ. In my opinion the first Christmas miracle was about a child being born of a virgin woman. If that isn’t a miracle in itself, I don’t know what is. 

I’m in love with Christmas because of family & friends, beautiful decorations, gift giving, traditions, and the birth of the son of God. I ask you, why are you in love with Christmas?