What does Christmas mean to me?

What does Christmas mean to me? As a kid in Fresno, Christmas was one of my favorite days of the year. It was the day when my brother and sister and I would wake up at the crack of dawn and go jump in our parents bed, eager to open stockings and presents. Of course in our family, my parents liked to see us children squirm a bit...so they would draw out the waking up process for ages (or well...to my parents credit, it seemed like ages). First they would pretend that we were not there and keep “sleeping” (how you can pretend to sleep with three kids jumping in and out of bed I do not know...)...then they would acknowledge our presence by making small talk, but of course not get out of bed...eventually they would get out from under the covers and claim they needed to get dressed (who needs proper clothing for opening presents!?)...and just as we thought it was time to go open stockings, my lovely father would insist on playing Bruce Springsteen's live version of Santa Clause is Coming to Town (which mind you, is a good version....but not when you have a pile of loot waiting to be opened...)...finally after all of the stalling shenanigans were over we were allowed into the living room to find our stockings filled so full they were set on the chairs or couch instead of hanging (usually the present opening process is very orderly in my family as it is closely overseen and regulated by my parents, one child at a time with a rotating order of who goes first each “round”...but when it came to stockings, anything went...so mayhem often ensued). After the stockings had been emptied and double checked for “hiding” presents, we would head to the kitchen to make breakfast...a hearty meal of pancakes or waffles with bacon and sausages and fruit. And it was not until breakfast was eaten, the dishes done, and the table reset for lunch were we allowed back into the living room to begin the big present opening ceremony.

When we first moved to Madison the traditions remained mostly the same...the one addition was a little sign strung across the top of the stairs forbidding us children (usually in clever riddle form) from going downstairs to the living room before our parents were awake (which was still the unrealistically slow process described above).

As we have gotten older the sign and traditions continued to remain similar , except that now the house is “pleasantly woken up” by the “melodious serenade” of my brother, Rein, on his tuba.

This is the tradition of Christmas morning in my family and it's evolution over the years....for me, it is the way I celebrate Christmas....it always has been for the most part probably will be. However for the first time in my 20 years of life, I am spending Christmas away from home and tradition. Currently I am in Berlin, Germany at the house of the Otto Family and am/will be taking part in their family Christmas traditions (a good friend, Tim, who I met in Oslo is also with us for the holiday). So far it has been wonderful (today we cut down the Christmas tree from their backyard and decorated....there are even real candles on it...) and I am quite excited to partake in the remainder of the holiday traditions (meals, gift exchanges, church, family, etc). But in this new new Christmas experience, I started thinking about what Christmas actually meant to me....is it the traditions? Is it the time with family? Is it the presents? Is it church? Is it snow? Is it particular food? What does Christmas mean to me? And while I do not think that I can answer that in full...I do think that I have realized this Christmas season, that it is the people you are with....be that family or good friends. Don't get me wrong, I cherish the Christmas traditions, the food, church, snow, etc that I have at home with my family and the fond memories of Christmas' past...but I am becoming keenly aware that those extra things are not the be-all-end-all of Christmas. Will I miss not being at home with my family? Of course....but right now, I am in Berlin, I am finishing out a wonderful and memorable semester in Norway, I am thoroughly enjoying this new and different experience, and I am with dear friends that are as close to family as it gets...and I am discovering what Christmas means to me.