Christmas Traditions
When I think of Christmas, I
think of lots of snow….a deep moist, fluffy snow….and going to Grandma’s house
across town to open presents. A delicious Christmas dinner with all our
family’s favorite dishes also comes to mind! Ham, hot rolls, sweet potatoes,
turkey, dressing and lots of pie, my oh my!
Grandma’s
house? It’s hard to believe our
home has become “Grandma’s house” in what seems like just a few short years.
And as for snow, my how our seasons have really changed! When I was a kid, two
foot of snow by Thanksgiving was the norm and now it’s just a memory in these
parts.
Grandma is gone and so are my
folks. Our kids are grown and we have grandkids all our own. Where has time
gone?
Wifeus and I welcome visits from the girls throughout the
year, with Christmas being just one of those wonderful times. Honestly, the
spirit of Christmas for us is celebrated every day by just being together,
being alive, healthy and enjoying each other’s company.
As I look out into my yard, I
see two oaks I planted some thirty years ago. One, a pin oak, was a seedling
found hitching a ride in the container with a “Snow Cloud” crab apple tree. I
had purchased the crab apple from a nursery for the sole purpose of attracting
Cedar Waxwing to the yard. It worked. The birds come every year the tree bears
fruit.
The other is a burr oak my
father gave me. It was only about a foot tall, with leaves almost as long as it
was tall when I planted it. Now, hanging from its lower branches and in the
front yard yet is the “Red Neck” swing set the grandkids so dearly love. Just
like their mother, it is the simple things they adore and are amused with the
most.
Both of the oak trees are
over 30 feet high now but it seems like just yesterday our daughters would
giggle as they ran and jumped over the small oaks in a play world all their
own. And as for Christmas presents, the girls spent more time playing with the
wrapping, bows and the boxes the presents came in than they did with the actual
toys we spent hours shopping for.
The gift they seemed to
appreciate the most was the time and attention we were able to give them.
Caring and sharing: a present to last a lifetime.
During Christmas, even
amongst all this harmony, loved ones can get a little testy when so much is
going on. A man needs to do what he needs to do in order to restore good
will…like get out from under foot, off the couch, out of the kitchen, out of
the house and let the wife and now-grown daughters do the cooking and planning
for Christmas Day.
Last year, instead of
matching wits with the women, my buddy Mark and I decided discretion would be
the better part of valor and took to the hills for our very first Christmas Eve
Day Hunt. Traditions need to start somewhere!
We promised to be home way
before the other quests arrived and, of course, be home in time for dinner. The
women didn’t mind us “getting out of the house!” In fact, they welcomed and
encouraged it.
What a memorable hunt we had.
Both Mark and I had lost our fathers in 1995. The fathers who got us started in
hunting, fishing and enjoying the Great Outdoors. This hunt to celebrate
Christmas would be for them as well.
Mark did harvest a turkey in
the short time we were out and you can imagine our surprise when I cleaned the
bird and found its crop plumb full of acorns. I never knew this grand bird ate
the acorn shell and all…swallowed it whole. I always thought it cracked them
and pecked out the meat.
The girls took several of
these acorns home, compliments of Mark’s Christmas turkey, planted them in
their yards and now have several white oak trees about the size of the burr oak
my father gave me so long ago. I can’t wait to see the grandkids jump over them
this spring! Great things can come in small packages.
Wishing you
all a very Merry Christmas. If you
have an outdoor adventure you would like to share, contact me at ptaunton@cableone.net.