Everyday Canvas

Christmas, Then and Now

Prompt: Was Christmas more fun as a child or is it more fun as an adult?

---------------

My childhood is so far away that I have difficulty remembering the fun in comparison to later, but I am guessing I must have had more fun then, since I liked the Christmas's jingly music that repeated everywhere the adults took me to. In my old age, those songs stick to my head and annoy me. Although I still enjoy one song The Little Drummer Boy, and some of the Christmas music such as the Nutcracker Ballet and Corelli's Concerto Grosso in G minor.

I used to love, then, the movies It's a Wonderful Life and Miracle on 34th Street, but I don't like watching them again, only because I have never liked to see a movie or read a book more than once. Except, I can still watch the cartoon, A Charlie Brown Christmas.

I also used to love the shopping and the writing of Christmas Cards and stuff like that. Not anymore. It could just be because with time and repetition some things, including decorating and putting up lights up, have become boring chores. This year, I only have a wreath on the front door. This could be partly due to the fact that, in older years, the social life diminishes somewhat, at least in respect to the old friends and family members we used to have and the big parties we all used to feel so excited about during the earlier and middle years.

One thing I still like to do is the cooking. I can get more creative with Christmas food than what we eat in Thanksgiving, since I can substitute something else for turkey, which I don't like. The one thing I appreciate about Christmas is the way people become nicer. Not that I meet "un-nice" folks at other times, but I find that people do smile more and are more polite in little ways.

I guess there are some things I still enjoy about Christmas, as long as the meaning of it doesn't get lost in the commotion, but in general, I probably felt a lot more enthusiasm about the holiday while a child and as a middle-aged adult than now.