Memories of Christmas Past

Christmas is all about cliches so forgive the lack of originality in the title. I originally scrapped the idea of a Christmas post, but my friend and talented blogger encouraged me to follow through. A little over a year ago, I wrote a paper for my medieval drama class about the true meaning of Christmas as seen through several modern and medieval works of art. I talked about how most contemporary representations of Christmas are based on the materialistic idea of gift-giving, the gluttony of the feast, and the lack of regard for the Baby Jesus and the rest of Christianity. Although I firmly believe that this is the "true" Christmas, it is not the Christmas I experienced growing up. And I'm sure many of you would agree.

I grew up in a somewhat secular household, but Christmas was still celebrated here. The 24th always consisted of a big dinner at my grandparents' house that included cousins, uncles, aunts, grand-uncles, grand-aunts, and other relatives. It was a way of getting the entire family together in celebration of...well...family I guess. The dinner would always include large plates of moro(a combination of rice and beans), pastel en hoja(boiled dough with a mixture of ground beef and victuals), honey-glazed pork, wine, and a large turkey turkey with stuffing. It would be a way for adults to enjoy wine, liqueurs, and good conversation, and for kids to have one last night of anticipation capped off by fireworks before the big day.

This is how I remember them.

The next day was pure joy. We would wake up and check out the extensive collection of gifts of all sizes and colors under the tree before ripping them open. I could never get enough toys, but I hated clothes more than anything(ironically enough, it's the other way around now). From Toy Story toys, basketball hoops, Nintendo 64 games, bicycles, baseball cards, and cash, there was no way to disappoint me as a kid back then. Sure, I didn't get every single item from my absurdly long Christmas list, but kids only feel their worth in the world through stuff and entertainment. And affection I guess.

But it's different now. The holiday does not have that magical aura anymore--if this was 1997, I'd be playing Donkey Kong on my Game Boy Pocket right now. Christmas will never be as great as it was back then, and that makes me sad, but it still reminds me. It always puts things into perspective and brings back a little bit of that ecstasy back. I sometimes feel like the Grinch, overwhelmed by food and family and just the general spirit of it all, but it's the long-lasting tradition and the memories created by it that make me look forward to it every year. I warned you at the beginning that Christmas was cheesy so there's no other way to explain it (sorry). But after it's over, there's nothing left to do but move on to normalcy again, and try to bring back some of that joy with you.