I saw this quote a few minutes ago,

Erma Bombeck – “There’s nothing sadder in this world than to awake Christmas morning and not be a child.”

It didn’t make the other 51 weeks ok, but it was a blessed respite. For a few days we felt we were loved. Maybe we even were.

Christmas on our own is safe, no family minefields, but that missing ingredient of being able to believe we hold a place in someone’s heart, even for a day, turns out to be important for us. We missed it a lot this year.

blessings,
Austin

My family doesn’t stand on ceremony for Christmas. There is almost no gift giving and when there is, it is mostly handmade things, gifts from each other’s kitchen, etc. Treasures. There is family and then there is family.

Remember, I am the only member of the family that isn’t deathly ill with some sort of killer auto-immune disease. So any holiday, whether it is Christmas, Easter, or even the 4th of July, we get together to break bread and share with each other. I guess the knowledge from an early age makes us aware that any one of us could be gone at any time. Let’s not forget the young daughters of my family who have already died from this awful disease.

I can’t say that I actually believe in the holidays, especially Christmas. There are so many pegan rituals around this holiday anyway. But for me it’s a gathering of family that may not be here next year, so we revel in the company of each other.

My family lives very close to death every day, so it makes these holidays very important to us. We even make a few holidays several times a year of our own with garden parties and gatherings when we feel like it. We don’t pretend about anything. There’s no sense to it. There cannot be any regrets when the worst happens. We need to know that and we need to share good times together.

I like to send cards for the holidays, but I don’t want to offend anyone either. To me the card is a product of my own creation and to let those I think about know that I care enough to send one.

This is just my take on things.

I don’t like the deceit either. Christmas should and can be a joyous occasion for those of us who believe in a Savior, but it’s become exactly what you said it was, a day when the worst perpetrators get a Get-out-of-jail free card. It sickens me too.