This past weekend we went to Meridian , MS. to celebrate Christmas with The Brookshire side of the family. All thirty something of us were present and accounted for.
As I went to hug one of my Son In Laws, he said Happy Fourth Christmas, meaning....this was the fourth time we had celebrated Christmas as a family with all our extended families...
I hadn't thought of it, but we do a lot of celebrating cause that is what family does..You do it even when you don't want to..You do it even it means travel and crying children, grouchy husband or wife, depending on whose family you are headed to..
It means..ruffed up gifts that are floating in the car..the wife wondering if we got them all..who drew whose name and did I forget someone ? What about the casserole you were to bring..Oh yea, we didn't have a pan at the apartment so I will cook it when I get there,more worry I won't find the right ingredients for the Spinach casserole that has to be made with a roll of jalapeno cheese that is impossible to find...Oh well, I will do my best and the first person to say, where did you find the cheese, I will confess it is really Mexican Velveeta..I know..processed food..tell me that's not what you ate at Christmas dinner ? I bet your dish had some mushroom soup or fried onion rings from a can on it...
What is worse..the joy of travel OR the person who has cooked and cleaned for your arrival..You know..the trying to make it look like you didn't just have "Christmas for your own family of 12..The babies, the diapers, the mounds of hidden dirty clothes, the 20 bags of trash hidden in the garage..And all those boxes that you paid at least 50 cents for just to make the package look good...
Then, you have the long awaited dinner, lots of people gulp down what you have spent three days fixing in twenty minutes..Not to mention the dishes..oh the dirty dishes...The trying to figure out what to take when it is 40 one day and 75 the next..I think I saw someone in flipflops.. ? Yes ma am , I did.. ..
What does it all mean ? The feeling of love when you are together..the laughter , the watching the relatives talk and reconnect after several months of not seeing one another, the bond that only family has...the feeling of growing up together gives us an edge that no one other than family has...
The look on the great grandmothers face as she is so proud and full of love for her family ,but longing for her husband who would not believe all the new people who have become a part of us since he died a few years ago.
It means pain and hard times put aside for this one day...It means forgiveness, setting aside our selfish needs and insecurities ..Celebrating four Christmases , It ain't easy folks, but it's over for another year...We did it ! We will do it again, God Willing..We will celebrate the birth of the most important person in history...
Getting Ready now for the New year...Got to think about that one for while...I am not ready ..Got to reflect and try to start fresh..But then again, we get to do that every day as Christians ..We are blessed...
Robin
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3 comments:
The first part of your blog is pretty much how Jeremy views Christmas! But, we actually do ending up have a good time and enjoying our families. Even if it's the 4th (or more!) time. We have our final gathering Thursday!
Christmas memories are so precious! We played some of our video from the children's past Christmas's and it was a hoot! Especially my hair. I completely agree with everything you said. The most important aspect of family Christmastime is the cord of faith that is woven through all the generations. It's a cord that binds us together, immediate family and our extented family of believers. You are building a heritage of faith amongst all those casserole dishes! Have a joyful New Years Day!! Don't forget to throw that ham hock in the black eyed peas...
Wish you where here for New Year's Eve dinner or New Year's day lunch- but we can do it when you are back.
Our Christmas now is very simple, not like you dealing with many loved ones. Enjoy the masses while you have them. Family is a beautiful thing and we miss being with ours. But we are in His will and that is what matters. And WE are not the Christmas or any day issue!! PTL-We are all so blessed!
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