Christmas Time

    Last week i took down the last of my Christmas decorations, i brought out all of  my box's, and while listening to the last of my Christmas music, i set about the task of putting everything away until next year. As a self described Christmas nut, this time of year is always a bit sad for me. To know that i have to wait another year for the joy, and excitement that Christmas brings. For the excitement of spending the holidays with family and friends. The joy of over decorating your house with trinkets and ornaments collected at random Christmas shops, and stores that i have found in my travels. For me each item brings to it a memory of Christmas past, of the person that gave me the ornament, or decoration. Of where i was in my my life, and what Christmas was like for me then. It is, in a way another way for me to travel down Christmas lane, and think of and reminisce about Christmas past.
   For me, i love Christmas for a wide variety of reasons. Not only for the ridiculous decorations, or the opportunity to try and put up so many Christmas lights you can see the glow from your house, before you even reach your street. It for me is really the entire season. Its the fact that its the end of the year, business's are slowing down, and people are taking vacations. The weather starts to get colder, and some of us secretly wish for snow to make the season that much more festive. On top of that, there are all of the various holiday events, and party's. The various Christmas parties with friends, dinner with family, and holiday parties at work. Christmas is a time where we really try and be a bit nicer, where we take the time to think about other people, if even it is just to send them a card, or volunteer at a food shelter. For some people though all Christmas is, is an over hyped holiday,which makes me sad, but for me its so much more.
  Now i don't really see religion during Christmas, as i believe in our day and age it should transcend religion. It should be something that we can all come together on, if even it is just to be a bit nicer around this time of year. I believe that you can take something from Christmas regardless of religion if you simply take it for what it is. The one time a year where people come together to say thanks for being in our lives. To say thanks for being in my family, and being my friend. To celebrate past years, and to look forward to the future. To give something to someone that will make their life better, to show them they are not forgotten or to simply put a smile on their face. Regardless of the cost, whether it be homemade and no cost at all, or something that broke the bank, the cost should never be the issue, it should always be the thought behind it. And right there is the core of it, the thought...thinking of others.  
    I  try very hard to start and keep traditions around the holiday season, because i believe that it is another big part of it. That tradition can be anything, and the fun thing is coming up with those traditions. For me this year, i started a Hard Cider tradition where on Christmas eve, we open up a different bottle of Hard Cider and sit outside and smoke cigars. Its not much, but its something where years later when we continue this tradition we can talk about years past. We can remember the good bottles and the bad bottles, and the conversation is all spurred on by our traditions. I was very privileged to have a mother that tried very hard to start and keep family traditions. She did this, because she grew up in a family that did not have them. Christmas in her family seemed to be more of a time of depression, where they focused on all they didn't have, instead of celebrating what they did, Family, and friends. Christmas doesn't have to be about the gifts you give, it should be about the time you spend. The traditions and celebrations that you and your family and friends share around the holiday. Its getting together to share that bottle of cider, or to do that white elephant gift exchange you have done each year with friends. Where there is one weird gift like a vase, that comes back every year, and is the most coveted of white elephant gifts. These kind of  traditions, and celebrations are what Christmas is to me. Its the reason i run a a Christmas themed camp, and why when i am feeling down i listen to Christmas music. To try and grab hold of that feeling of togetherness and joy that Christmas brings, and to share that with the world.