Christmas is my favorite time of the year! I grew up in a small house with a large family where my mother made the holidays a time of happiness and wonder. We didn't have much in the way of money or things when I was a child, but like the "Whos of Whoville" we always had Christmas joy in our
hearts and home no matter what we got from Santa.
I distinctly remember one Christmas when I was about eight years old. My family had those big old-fashion outdoor lights in many different colors. I was always so excited when my dad put them up, the earlier in December the better! For me they were a sign of the joy of the days to come. That particular year we actually got some cold weather, and in Florida that's a rare occurrence. That night we all went outside to see the lights when Dad turned them on for the first time. Oh, the wonder! We were giddy with excitement, so much so that my mother had to find a way to calm us so we could settle down for bed.
She brought out blankets and hot cocoa and had us sit up on the hood of our family station wagon so we could get a better view of the decorations. It was so cold we could see our breath and we shivered as she got us bundled up together. She started singing Christmas carols with us and before long her favorite song, Silent Night, finally quieted us down. I can remember squinting my eyes to make the lights turn into stars of bright joyous colors and thinking I could never be happier than I was at that moment. This fond memory of our family traditions stays with me to this day and instills a wonder of the simple things I have shared with my own children throughout the years.
This post is part of the Unwrap Your Memories Campaign for Destiny USA. Check them out here: destinyusa.com
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