Well, here we are. We finally made it to Christmas 2023. It’s hard to believe just how fast this year has already flown by. I feel like we just had Christmas a month or so ago.
This year finds me spending the holiday with my mother back in Minnesota. I’m happy to be back out at the farm and enjoying the memories of the years and Christmases I spent here. I was hoping to give the kids a taste of what it was like for me to have Christmas on the farm. It was always such a big celebration that went on for many hours over two days.
There are so many memories that I wish I could relive them all with my children, but that’s just it. I can’t relive them. I can’t give my kids the entirety of that experience, no matter how much I want to, it’s just not possible.
Time has long since marched on my grandparents and my father are no longer with us. As the youngest of all my cousins, we all have our own families and traditions we enjoy. That’s just the way life is. Life moves on and the traditions change as new families grow.
But I don’t look at it as depressing by any means. While my kids won’t know how it was for me growing up, I can still give them as much as I’m able to as we continue our own traditions and celebrations. I need to enjoy that window for as long as I can. My kids are teenagers now, and before I know it, another set of families is going to grow, and new traditions are going to be formed. Hopefully, I can give my kids stories to pass on to their children.
Embrace the time that you have. Remember the past and enjoy the new experiences and memories you’re creating. That’s what it’s all about. In the end, we all have our experiences as kids, as parents, and eventually as grandparents. One isn’t better than the other. It’s just different as each stage of life is different than the one prior. Go out and create those memories with your family, enjoy the time with everyone, and make sure you don’t forget what made the holiday special for you in every stage of your life. That’s what makes this time of year so special. No matter how it changes the love of family and the time spent together is what makes those memories last a lifetime.
While I can’t give my children the all-night Christmas Eve celebration that went till 4:00 in the morning on Christmas Day with my grandparents, I can give them a similar experience, maybe with their grandmother. It’s those different things in life that we may have to adapt to make more enjoyable and to bring in the next generation. After all, it’s those memories. It’s all that we get to hang on to. In the end, they’re worth more than anything else that’s under that Christmas tree or any other possession we can have during this holiday season.
So this year I go out with my children and try to make new memories with them and do some of the things that I used to do growing up on the farm, even though maybe they weren’t always Christmas memories, they’re still memories that these kids will have for years to come.
For my farm in Minnesota, I wish all of you back in Iowa a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, and look forward to 2024 with each and every one of you
