As children, we are told stories of a jolly old man who rides on a magic sleigh and delivers presents on Christmas morning to everyone across the world. My childhood is full of a dozen different movies based on fantastical stories that filled my imagination and gave me feelings of hope and love. While today we may not believe in these stories anymore, the feelings of hope and love live on every holiday, inside of us. Why is that? How can a fictional story told to us as children continue to affect our moods and attitudes today? Because Santa Claus is real. However, not in the sense that there is a jolly old man who lives at the north pole, drinks lots of milk and eats tons of cookies. Rather, we carry these stories inside of us, and we choose to live our lives in a way that models the stories we heard as children. Every time you give somebody else hope, or show somebody love, you become their Santa Claus. Because that’s what he does, he gives hope and love to those who need it. So, remember this holiday season, that Santa Claus is only as real as you make him to be. Because each of us has a Santa Claus inside, ready to come out and give hope and love to others this holiday season. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From now until Christmas Day, I would love for people tell any story they wish about the holidays. Maybe you want to share what your favorite Christmas story is. Or, maybe you have a story that happened to you or somebody you know, that has touched you or other people during the holidays, giving hope and love. Whatever it is, feel free to share it in a comment below! Merry Christmas, and Happy Holidays!
I love spending time with my family and getting lots of good food. <3 But presents are also pretty nice as well. -w- I especially love giving to my friends and family and seeing them enjoy the gifts I give them.
I had to choose something different, because the "All of the above" option isn't present (pun not intended)! I love everything about this time of year. It's nice to go to Kroger, and see the line of live trees in the front, with the sound of the Salvation Army donation collector ringing their bell. Every time I pass a bell ringer with a big red bucket, I feel obligated to drop my change in. I love decorating. If you know me, or know how I build on Minecraft, you'll know that! When it comes to decor, I'm a perfectionist. We haven't gotten our decorations up, but once I get over this bronchitis, we'll be going to said Kroger to pick our tree up. We have sort of an unintentional tradition. My grandmother used to be a HUGE crafter, so she had a lot of different things. In a few totes, she had eucalyptus for decoration. Because of this, all our Christmas decorations smell like eucalyptus, so the tradition of making our home smell of the leafy plant aroused. We always cooked a grand dinner on Christmas Day, usually the cooking starting on the eve. Even to this day, being fifteen years old, I still wake my parents up and rip open the gifts under the tree on Christmas morning, just like I did when I was little. Last year was the first year I ever sat on the couch to open my gifts, rather than sitting on the floor by the tree. Christmas makes me feel all warm, even when it's not warm at all. I love the smells of eucalyptus, the bright lights, and all the smiles. Christmas isn't about the gifts (although it wouldn't be the same without them), it's about family and friends. Spending time together decorating, wrapping presents, cooking, watching Frosty the Snowman or Rudolf on CBS for the umpteenth time; that's what Christmas is about to me. I wish everyone a very happy holiday season! And if you don't celebrate Christmas, then enjoy this time of year anyway; it's never a wrong time to be merry!
ugh christmas. thats about the best way to sum up my love/hate relationship with this holiday. the lights the shinys the foods are all well and good but theres also the stressing over presents, my general inability to make wrapping paper look good leaving me to use tin foil and duct tape. and more kids than anyone should be made to tolerate. i like the looks of the decorations but the music tends to grate on my nerves. traditional songs to me sound like funeral dirges. but i think the things i like the most are the cookies and the spending time with my parents that i only see two or three times a year. and the things i dislike the most are the stores decorating before the labour day !? i could go on and on about that last point but i wont this time. I also tend to enjoy crushing the hopes and dreams of little kids. every year my innocent cousins start going on about santa and everything 'he' brought them and i'll swoop in and tell the poor five year olds that the toys that 'santa' brought then was actually bought from a store by their parents, cousins, ect and proceed to explain how it would be impossible for someone of that weight and age to achieve a round the world trip in a gravity defying vehicle with mythical magickal animals and how some peoples don't celebrate christmas in the same manner as other cultures. that usually ends up with one or two of them little ones crying so yeah. thats basically my christmas every year.
Fictional? Not real?! I am shocked But you're right of course, it's the seasonal spirit and not the Coca Cola fabrication I voted vacation because in the end that's what matters to me, but my holiday season fully evolves around the most important person in my life, my girlfriend. Thing is, we don't live together and we both prefer it this way even though we really enjoy being together (we visit each other on a frequent basis, usually during the weekends. I go to her or she comes over to me on a Friday and then leaves around Sunday or Monday). Most of our friends don't get it by the way: why would we continue to stay apart while we love each other and really like to be with each other? It basically started this way, though I think it has something to do with the fact that we started dating at an older age (30 - 35) while we were already pretty much independent at that time. And we really enjoy our freedom. For example: the both of us hardly ever plan our meals. We make sure to have all the ingredients we need and then simply decide ad-hoc. And that can even go as far as thinking "meh" and going out for dinner (our best dates were the ones which we decided on at the same day. So for example: Keiko would sometimes call me during her lunch break to ask if I felt like going out that evening. At one time I even managed to call her around 18:00 (she was on the train) to ask her not to stop in Baarn (her former place of residence) but come over to my place). The fun part was that she was at Utrecht CS when I called her: >< close to boarding the train to Baarn (and then had to wait 30min for the next train to Arnhem (heading into my place of residence). Our friends don't get it, but we really enjoy it this way. But.... During the holiday season, the time between Christmas and New Years eve, all of that changes a bit. It is the one week where we spend the whole week together and we're really looking out for that time every single year. It is what makes it very special to us. We don't do gifts, but we really enjoy each others company. Our favorite Christmas eve is to get a good bottle of wine (maybe 2 ), a good movie (Either an international one (but only from last century) or an Asian one) and my couch (it helps that I have big flatscreen TV ). Christmas dinner? Have you actually read what I wrote up there? What makes you think we have that planned out? True story... Last year we had a hard time deciding what to do. So on Christmas eve (Keiko came over to my place) we went out to visit a local café (context: its one of those cafe's where you can actually talk to each other and have a good time because there's no ear deafening music blasting, which is exactly what we like). We had a good time, talked to dozens of people (one of the reasons we like to go there) and back at my place... uh oh... We bought some good meat and vegetables the week before (we always split the costs) and they were in my freezer. It would have helped a lot if I hadn't forgot to take 'm out to defreeze. Which I didn't So last year our Christmas eve meal consisted of bread, scrambled eggs and of course we uncorked the bottle of wine which we initially had planned. Bread, wine and a good movie. And you know what? It was the best Christmas dinner ever. And the best part: many of our friends don't get it. At all. Made us re-evaluate some things to be honest. Apparently, according to some people, such a dinner is ruined when this happens and you should re-evaluate your relationship when it does (seriously, that's what he told Keiko). We didn't really appreciate those words of "wisdom" and yah... It's what you said JD... Christmas is about being together, being there for each other and having a good time and making due. And, if you can, also reflecting on that. And with that... I'd like to seize the moment and wish every one of you guys and girls out there a very good holiday season. I hope you'll have a great time either spending time with family, dear ones or with our community and having a great time doing so! Most of all: Don't let ANYONE tell you how you "should" celebrate this season. In the end only one thing matters: that you and those you care for are enjoying yourselves and are having a good time. Hmmm, loaded post I suppose but yah, sorry, this time of year means a great deal to me, also on a personal level, and yah.... then this happens. Happy holidays everyone!
When your story started out I thought you were older and then you revealed you're only 15. That kind of shocked me. It was just the childhood references. Sorry but I still consider teenage years "childhood". But I totally agree and grew up with the stories and the movies. My all time favorite Christmas movie is The Santa Clause with Tim Allen. It was unique and an inside peek to another side of the story. Big Christmas dinner it's like a second Thanksgiving. Our family traditions seem very similar. We're like completely different in our approach. I'm more into let's make it Merry and not squash dreams during the Holiday season. I see nothing weird with living separately. It allows a little more freedom and a little more mystery in the relationship. I'm sure when you two get engaged you'll both be looking into a joint place to start a new chapter. I'll post my Christmas story later. Lots to do today.
Yah, that's just it. We're already engaged In Dutch that would be "verloofd". And that's the main thing which drives some of our friends crazy.
Only a few posts so far, and already you can see the diversity in holiday traditions for people. That's one of the things that makes this holiday so great, is that everyone celebrates it differently.
I remember when I was a small child I got a toy sweet shop for christmas, I ate the sweets and got a rash that made me look like a map of the world
