And So This Is Christmas!!

"And so this is Christmas. I hope you have fun. The near and the dear one. The old and the young." Those were the words of John Lennon and yes, this is Christmas, 2007. It is a day of joy and happiness. It is a day to remember our religious heritages, to eat the turkey and ham; to share a cup of eggnog; to sit down with family and share the joys of so many Christmas days that have passed by. And a day to remember.

Christmas was always a special day in my family. My dad was a product of the Great Depression and Christmas was a day to forget the trials and tribulations of the hard world created by the collapse of the economy and to be joyous for what you did have.

My dad was one of the fortunate people during the depression. He was a man that wasn't afraid of work and so when the WPA began looking for workers in the Parkersburg area, he was in line and managed to procure a government job. This meant a steady income when others had little if anything. And, Dad was a saver. He could find a way to put away 50 cents or a dollar each pay period, insuring that Christmas gifts would be plentiful on that joyous day.

He always bragged that my brother, Ed, always had a Christmas. Dad would frequently talk about buying Ed a bicycle during the Great Depression and hiding it for several months so that it could be "delivered" by Santa on Dec. 25.

Of course, I came along much later in life and didn't experience the frugality of a Depression-era Christmas. Still, Dad kept Christmas the most important day of the year. As October and November came along, his nightly commutes from Cleveland to Aurora would grow a bit longer as he would stop at a store along the way and make that giftly purchase for Mom or me.

And, until later in life, he wasn't much of a gift wrapper. He would hand you a bag, or most certainly several bags, and there was your Christmas from him. Those of you who might have received a gift from me now know why I have such an appreciation for brown paper sacks.

But it is the many Christmas Days in earlier life that I so often think about. Dad was always the first one up on Christmas morning. And, we are talking EARLY. His job made him an early-riser anyway, so crawling out of bed on Christmas morning at 4 a.m. was easy for him. I honestly don't remember him getting me up that early, but I do remember the 5 o'clock hour being the moment of reckoning.

Dad would shake me awake. I have to admit that sometimes I was already awake. Other times he succeeded to getting me out of bed to see what Santa had left for me. And it was always a treat. Dad and Mom so frequently went overboard. But, as Dad would say, "It's okay, it's Christmas."

Those days have come and gone, and needless to say I miss them. I miss seeing Dad's face beam with joy as he watched Mom and me open our presents. It didn't matter whether he got anything or not (trust me, he always did). The most important thing on Dad's agenda on Christmas Day was that those he loved were happy and well taken care of.

Yes, I was a very lucky child. And I miss Christmas with Dad like nothing else in life. Merry Christmas!!!