Magic Christmas
I keep thinking about this really nice
Christmas we had years ago. Grama and Grampa had
Christmas dinner and George and Soni along with Cory and Carrie, were
all there eating at the wooden round table. It was loaded with great
family food, and everyone was laughing and talking about this and
that. We felt close to each other and the Christmas tree was covered
with Grama's sentimental ornaments in front of the window in
the Living room.
Berea, Kentucky on Christmas is cold and
pretty. Sometimes it snows and when it does that is really a special
day. As we ate dinner that afternoon, big wet snowflakes began to
fall in showers outside our window. It was so pretty, and produced
the kind of memory that has me seeing cartoon images of characters like
Micky and Minnie Mouse . . . with giant individually crystallized
snowflakes swimming through the air like a surreal fairy tale . . . our silhouettes in shadow, encircled within the glow of our holiday
dinner table.
Tee Hee
Grampa got up suddenly, pushing his
dinner chair back from the table, and reached for his coat. With
mittens and wool hat he swiftly went out the front door and into the
driveway. We all watched as he began to gather snow from the car and
make a snow ball, his gaze fixed on the dining room window, at us.
He tossed the snowball and when it hit
our window a few of us wordlessly got up and put our jackets on too.
Jason, Katie, Cori, Carrie, George, maybe Soni, and I -ran outdoors
and began a Christmas day snowball fight with Grampa, laughing and
dodging snow. It was so much fun that we soon started making garbage
can cones for an igloo, we all had joyful full-bellied smiles of
people who felt happy to play fully, and freely, in each other's
company. There was a lot of love going around!
Grama smiled from the window and I know
she was feeling happy, too.