ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS…FOR ALL FAMILIES TO HAVE A HAPPY CHRISTMAS

Ever since my siblings and I were young, the house was always the Christmas lunch hub.  Relatives would come and go through-out the day, exchanging hugs, kisses and gifts, sharing good food and catching up on what happened to them the year past.

And while over the years our numbers have fluctuated, all that significantly changed when the pandemic   happened.  There was no such Christmas get-together in 2020.  In 2021, Christmas lunch was limited to immediate family; it was scheduled and staggered among families so we wouldn’t exceed the number of persons allowed in one home.

So this year, one of my fondest wishes for Christmas is to have an entire family get together.  And by entire family, I mean my immediate family of 4 generations, plus the families of my aunts.  If we were complete that would translate to 47 relatives:  loud and riotous, tiring and stressful, but oh, so full of laughter and mirth.

Parallel to the above, my other Christmas wish is for all families to experience a happy Christmas:  a Christmas where loved ones are together, there is food to share on the table, gifts and joyful stores are exchanged, problems are temporarily forgotten, and all these because, Jesus’ birth –the reason for the season– is celebrated.