The Spirit of My Childhood Christmas

I like this definition of a good life.  It is true that people are happiest, not when they have what they want but when they want what they have.

 



This picture captures the spirit of Corinne-Bee's House



 

My Grandma Corinne asked little of life, but gave a lot.  Her glass was always half full.  She was an optimist.  She smiled often.  She laughed easily.  She was always up and doing.  She was my very best friend when I was a child.

 

If Grandma woke up to a garage full of manure on Christmas morning, she would have been so excited because she would have known that meant there was a pony somewhere!  I remember her oooohing and aaaahing over a Christmas gift one year and I suspected even then that she didn't have a clue what it was.  But it was given to her by someone she loved and that was enough for her.

 

My Dad inherited a lot of that.  When we were kids, he was the magic in Christmas.  Every year he'd tell us that when we got up, we should go straight into the kitchen for breakfast and then look at what Santa bought.  But there was always that twinkle in his eyes that let us know he was pulling our legs.  I remember the year my brother got an electric train for Christmas.  There was B, barely sitting up and half asleep (I think he was about 1) and Dad was playing with the train.

 

When my kids were little, they loved to go to Grandpa Barney's house for Christmas.  Just as Grandma Corinne was my Christmas icon, Grandpa Barney was theirs.

 

I want to be just like them both when I grow up!

 

Text © Gebara Education, 2012

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