The days always seem to slip by so fast. I have left work countless times in the 3 months since my last post saying to myself, “Tomorrow I will write a new entry on the blog”. Days have come and gone and yet still no new blog entry. Well today you are in luck!
Growing up in a family that owns a retail business has always played a unique part in my life and the holidays. While most spend their days shopping and getting their homes ready for the holidays my family is busy selling and getting the store ready for the holidays. Every family has that one event that really kicks off the holiday season,whether you are celebrating Hanukkah, Kwanzaa or like my family Christmas. For me the Christmas season has always been kicked off with the Open House in Sutter Creek or more recently the Parade of Lights.
The Parade of Lights has become another annual tradition since my niece loves parades. However, this year my niece (Lilli) was not in attendance for the parade. My sister, her husband (Cruz) and Lilli all took a vacation to visit Cruz’s family in Mexico. With that part of the family missing the Christmas build up was not quite the same.
There was an absence of Lilli running around bossing everyone around on where to put the ornaments on the tree. There was the absence of my sister and I conspiring on what to get mom and dad. I am not sure if it is because I am getting older, I know…I know I am only 25, or simply because of those absences that truly reminded me what the season is about. The Christmas season is not kicked off because we went to a parade or had the best cookies in town on Open House night. The season was kicked off because I was there with my family; The Christmas season was not kicked off by events but by people. It was kicked off by being bossed around by my niece and the conspiring about different Christmas presents.
Don’t get me wrong I have always loved the holiday. It has been a long time since I have associated Christmas with getting new things. But I have always had my entire family around me. I never really knew what it felt like to not have them all around for the build up. However, as we sat around the table at my parents house talking, or more so listening to Lilli talk about her tales of Mexico it felt like Christmas. This year there was no big build up for Christmas, however, that did not matter and the end of the day it was Christmas.
I hope that each and everyone of you enjoyed your Christmas surrounded by the people that matter most.
Merry late Christmas from all of us at Water Street!
