Seventy years ago today my mother passed away. She had turned 30 only four months before.
Today, as I have done for many, many years, I’ll lay a wreath at her grave commemorating her death. If alive today, she would be 100 years old.
While I don’t remember much about that Christmas 70 years ago, I do recall my uncle had given me a basketball and it got too close to a heater and almost melted it.
I was 3 ½ years old.
That’s almost the same age as our grandson Liam is now.
Christmas Day which is Saturday and it’s the season to be merry and joyful.
While I may not know what all the plans are for Christmas Eve and Day, it’s going to be merry. We’re going to have a good time because we’ll be with family at least part of the day.
We want Liam especially to have a good time. He’s getting to the age where he understands a little better what it’s all about.
Even though 70 years ago my mother had passed away a couple of days before Christmas, I think my dad, grandparents, aunts and uncles probably were trying to make it as joyful as possible considering the circumstances.
That included for me and my cousins.
This is also the time to be spiritual, as local pastors frequently remind us is the reason for the season.
After dad remarried, he and mother always enjoyed the Christmas season. Mother was the third oldest of eight children and dad was the youngest of five boys.
So on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day there were plenty of people around, especially with my mother’s family.
When I was young, we gathered on Christmas Eve at my grandmother and grandfather’s large house on Northwest 32nd Street in Oklahoma City for dinner. That was my mother’s side of the family.
Christmas morning was spent at our house opening gifts and eating breakfast. That afternoon, we were back at the same grandparents’ home for a mid-afternoon supper and then to open more gifts.
My parents built a lot larger home and we moved into it in February of my senior year of high school. After that, the Christmas Eve gatherings were at our house, but Christmas Day’s midafternoon supper and gift opening were at my grandparents’ home.
Those huge gatherings have gone away over the years. Up until several years ago, Pat and I hosted some of our extended family at our house on Christmas afternoon and evening for an early dinner, opening gifts and just spending time together.
On behalf of all our family I’d like to wish a Merry and very Blessed Christmas and wonderful New Year to everyone!