Christmas Memories......

It's Christmas time. All around you, there are Christmas decorations, the familiar ringing of the Salvation Army bell in front of the stores...a nip in the air early in the mornings and late evenings. All the stores are full of busy shoppers trying so hard to find that perfect gift for a loved one. Children all over the world are making their lists to send to Santa, and silently hoping that it really isn't true that he knows when you've been bad or good...or that if he does, there would be too many kids to keep track of and he would forget a misgiving or two...
I love Christmas time..it brings back so many memories of growing up. Mama always baked a ton of cookies and cakes and froze them. She'd take some out, we'd eat em all up, she'd take out some more..lol. Sometimes, I remember going to the freezer and sneaking some out so she wouldn't see me..Her cookies were simple, yet delicious! I remember one kind was just graham crackers with vanilla frosting. She'd sprinkle red and green sugar on them and that was it...they were so, so good. And she'd make a tea cake with a dab of grape jelly in the middle...Granny Brazier made those mostly...I miss Mama...and I miss Daddy too. He'd always act like Christmas was no big deal...but he sure did enjoy all that went along with it. He was our "Santa" when it came time to pass out presents at the family gathering...and at some point he always got us to gather round the piano and sing. I am thankful for the Christmases that I had growing up. Like I said, Mama made the holidays special. I would always get excited when Mama would come home from the store with apples and oranges which she would set out in a bowl, oh and the mixed nuts, still in their shells. She'd get out the nutcracker, and Daddy would make a mess shelling pecans..lol. I had to clean that mess up many times...stepped on a few shells too..ouch! Mama always bought a box of Chocolates too...us kids didn't like them much, except the caramel one, you know , the little square one...but Mama did. And I can still see the candy in the box, each one in it's little candy paper, and a bunch of them would have the top mashed in!...LOL..ya'll know what i'm talking about...she'd mash to see what flavor..ha ha....
What I wouldn't give to have just 1 day of one of those Christmases to relive again. Just one hour even. I would forget the gifts, the cookies, fruit and nuts, and sit beside them and just hold their hand. I would tell them as many times as I could how much I loved them, and thank them for all they did for me. I would shower them with hugs and kisses....but I know that will never happen. But their memories and Mama's Christmas legacies live on...Donna, Darrell and I still get together for Christmas, we still bake cookies and candies..I buy oranges and apples, altho neither Tony or myself ever eat them. I still get mixed nuts in the shell and we still gather round the piano and sing...sometimes it makes us cry..sometimes we get silly and laugh...either way, you can see, through us, Mama and Daddy there , ♫ if only in our dreams.♫