A Raisin Pie Christmas

Here it is, the day before Christmas. It's a time for reflection of Christmas seasons past. There have been some good ones and no bad ones. My ex-wife(see blog 12/15/13) remembers each and every one when the children were growing from toddlers to teen-agers. They're all a blur to me. It must be a man thing. Those darned kids grew up so quickly. Is it the same with you? Sometimes, when all three children get together with us at this time of year we reminisce about the old days. We'd ask them what they remember most and invariably it would boil down to the simpler things. We didn't have a boatload of money in the 70's so we watched our pennies. We packed the kids in the car and drove to a Christmas tree stand. They were usually located in a distant part of a grocery store parking lot. There'd be trees that started at $5 and worked their way up to $25. We always bought the less expensive tree but it had to be full of branches toward the bottom. Height didn't matter. It was the fullness of the tree that counted. We'd make our own decorations. Some were paper cutouts. We strung cranberries and popcorn around the branches. The children thought we had the best tree with the best decorations ever.
When I was a child we opened our presents on Christmas Eve. Grandpa would come to the house then say the same thing every year, "Let's get in my car and drive around town and see if we can see Santa". Then when we got home Santa had tricked us and under the tree were all the goodies he'd left.
Kids are so easy to fool.
When I got married our Christmas tradition changed for the better. My wife's family always had a traditional dinner on Christmas Eve then went to bed. That tradition continued with us. The next morning we, as a family, quietly arose from our slumber, put on our clothes that had been laid out the night before and went to the 7 AM church service. All the lights were out and no one dare look under the tree or in their stockings. When we got back home the fun and frivolity began. I like that tradition. We put Jesus before gifts. I think that's the way it should be.
The ex-wife and I are at that stage where gifts don't mean much. I call them 'raisin pie' gifts. My father in law died when he was 94. He was a very successful man; the spittin' image of Ward Cleaver with the same temperament. When he was asked what he wanted for Christmas he always responded the same way, "I'd like a raisin pie". It was his favorite as a kid and since he already had everything in life he wanted or needed he felt this was the perfect gift. His wife wasn't a pie maker but my wife could whip up anything so she made him his favorite. It was a gift of the heart.
We're by ourselves now. One of our children and his family lives an hour from us. We'll drive over to see them then have brunch. My son's in-laws will be there. They are delightful people and we'll laugh a lot. The other kids are in Kansas and Texas. Christmas telephone calls are the norm now. Too bad because we both miss the sparkling eyes and the laughter and giggles of our grandchildren but this is the way God meant it to be.
My ex-wife bought me a book this year. She already told me. I'm sure I'll like it. She asked me if I wanted a kindle and I said, "No, not this year". There's something special about having a book in your hand and then putting it on a shelf for later reference. I give my ex-wife money. I'd rather she pick out something for herself rather than feign excitement and joy then take it back to the store on the 26th.
Tonight we'll do something special. On the south end of Columbus is a place called German Village. We used to go down there all the time but now it's somewhat of a drive. German Village is just that; a community with cobblestone streets and homes like those one would find in southern Bavaria. We'll have dinner, look at the lights then attend Mass at St Mary's Catholic Church.
It really is a wonderful life.
Merry Christmas to all.