Merry Christmas

It's 6:56 am on the east coast of America. Santa has come and gone. As usual I missed him. How such a large man can be so stealth is beyond me. The gifts are under the tree and I'm just waiting for the rest of the family to wake up. They should sleep in, last night was a late one with some friends and family.

At some point the grandchildren will come over and Christmas will really begin.We'll open the presents so we don't have to listen to the whining about how much longer do we have to wait. Of course each will exclaim, "It's just what I wanted!" Little do they know that that's a Pop Pop's job, to spoil them rotten. I'll be grateful for the gift they got at the school Holiday store. It will be some cheap item that I don't need, but it will mean so much to me.

We'll open a few of the toys to keep the kids occupied while dinner preparations proceed. Any chance of resting will be gone as the first child asks if I can put a toy together. Part A slides into part C but must be square to part F. If you're a parent, you understand. It's always the times you need to use foul language that you can't.

Dinner will be served. You'll have to fight to get the grandkids to the table, but they come. A few words of grace and total food destruction begins. After awhile the meal is done. The kids run off to play, while us adults contemplate if we can stand up or not.

A little while goes by, the table is cleared and dessert comes out. A nice piece of pie and coffee. I'm diabetic but Christmas is the one time I cheat. More clean up. Actually clean up involves moving the dirty dishes from the dinning room to the kitchen sink. Well, sink, counter, and stove.

Night time comes, the relatives pack up and go. My wife and I head to the kitchen to begin the final clean up. We complain about it and make a pact not to do it again next year. We both know it's all talk.

Christmas was fun as a kid and still is many years into adulthood. Like the song says, "It's the best time of the year".

I wish you all a very Merry Christmas. I hope your day will be as satisfying as mine will be. I hope Santa ( he does exist) is good to you. I hope the New Year will bring you nothing but joy.

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