I early figured out how to enjoy Christmas, and that was to plan ahead and get many things done early. I shopped for Christmas gifts all year and just put things away in a safe spot until about one month before Christmas, when I would look over all my purchasers and decide where I have blanks. Very often I find several gifts for the same person or that I seriously over bought for the boys, but for the most part, by November 25, my gift shopping has been done. I used to play a game with myself to buy the gift that matched my budget, or to purchase the most clever gift that was within my budget. At no time did I spend so much money that I had to pay for the gifts in January. In other words, I tried to keep anxiety out of the Christmas season, by making a budget and then sticking with it. And of course, I try to do everything a long time ahead. One year when I was short of money I decided to make my gifts. As I am not handy with my hands, the gifts ended up decidedly unusual, and I never made presents again. My relatives are grateful. I love Christmas. I especially love the Thanksgiving to Christmas season, where every place is festive.
The only problem is that people are frantic to get to the end of their to-do list, and they forget that the season is to be enjoyed. My Father one year was ill in the hospital for the Christmas season, and my Mother was concerned that she had not completed her tasks for Christmas. Now I was a young woman, but had to remind my Mother that the list did not matter. What did matter was visiting Dad in the Hospital. Christmas would look after itself. That was the same year that my Father's watch stopped working, because he had a watch that required motion in order to keep wound. At that time, heart disease required the patient to stay in bed. Now the heart patient is up marching around the halls of the hospital, not laying in bed waiting to recover. That was in the early sixties. I learned that people are important at Christmas. So now, one month before Christmas,for me, everything is in place and everything is done, and now for the next month I can pay attentipn to the people and enjoy the events of the season. It is a good plan.
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2 comments:
I still have the watch which stopped running and can well remember our Father's feeling that everything in the world was going wrong when the watch stopped as well as the other problems. He was seriously depressed. Mother gave me the watch when Dad died and for many years it has been my backup watch. Unfortunately no amount of shaking will get it to work anymore but I can't bring myself to discard it. If memory serves me correctly we 3 bought it for either a birthday or Christmas present for Dad form the watch repairman in the office next to dad'd in the Leeson Lineham Building on Hastings in Vancouver.
Most have been almost 60 years ago.
Dave.
No wonder Dad was feeling depressed. Everything the medical folks telling him to do were doing things wrong!! And I hear folks talk about the good old days.
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