Making Christmas Memories

I love the Christmas season. As the old song goes, "it's the most wonderful time of the year!"

This has been an especially joyous Christmas, as I welcomed my eighth grandchild on November 7. Our youngest daughter, Mandy, came home from Korea (where my son-in-law works for the U.S. State Department) in September to have the baby, and we have had the pleasure of having her (along with the baby and the 20-month-old "big sister") staying with us. I will be very sad to see them leave on New Year's Eve, although I know that they are anxious to get back to their own home.

Our neighborhood is awash in Christmas lights and decorations, and the annual parade of cars driving through the neighborhood to view the sights has begun. I am almost through with my Christmas shopping, and we have just begun wrapping the gifts. And I am beside myself with excitement and anticipation of our Christmas celebration this weekend with all four of my daughters and all eight of my grandchildren.

Normally, I don't like crowds and I detest shopping, but I always seem to get carried away by the Christmas spirit when shopping with my wife for Christmas gifts. I love the hustle and bustle of the season and the sights and smells that are uniquely connected with Christmas.

There are some who might be expecting me to insert at this point a reminder of the "real meaning of Christmas". But I am going to leave that task to others. It seems as though those who would presume to remind us of the "true meaning of Christmas" would prefer that we temper our celebration of the season, suggesting that the joy we experience in the shopping, decorating and gift giving is somehow unseemly or in some way disregards the "reason for the season".

Christmas is a time of celebration. It is a time for me to be grateful for my family, friends, colleagues and clients. And it is a time for me to celebrate the greatest gift the world has ever known -- the birth of Christ.

It truly is "the most wonderful time of the year!"