It’s the day after Christmas and of course naturally all of my thoughts are on what happened yesterday. Christmas is one of my favorite days of the year, and it’s not even because of the day itself, it’s the build up to it. There is nothing more delightful than singing Christmas songs, baking holiday cookies, and enjoying the lights on everyones’ houses.

Many people seem to want Christmas to arrive faster but I personally enjoy the anticipation; the longer the wait the more excited I am when the day finally arrives. The night before Christmas my sister and I had a “sleepover” in my room that way we could talk about what we were hoping to open up the next day. I of course was dying to get a MacBook (which I am now typing on) and my sister was just generally desiring a multitude of things.

We were woken up the next day by my father at 5:20 in the morning. Now this may just be me but that seems rather early, my sister and I were thinking more along the lines of 6:30ish. Hours later we finished opening our stockings and all of our presents. “Santa” was wonderful to us this year, just as he always is. Later on in the day my family and I headed off to my aunt’s house to celebrate with my cousins and my grandparents. We enjoyed a delicious meal and many tasty desserts. More presents were opened and then Christmas was over.

After looking back on the day I am thankful for everything I received but I’m also thankful I have such an extraordinary family to celebrate it with. Now don’t get me wrong I am all about the presents, I’m a very materialistic person which can sometimes be my downfall, but the presents this year weren’t everything to me. Soon I will either be heading off to college or modeling and traveling, which means less time with my family. So as this past year progressed I tried to appreciate moments with my family more and more in hopes that I would recognize what truly matters most.

Christmas can mean many things to people. To some it’s celebrated for religious purposes, and to some it’s just for the fun memories and stories of Santa Claus. But what is related in both of those ways of celebration is the idea of family. One of the things religion tries to teach us is the idea that opening presents shouldn’t fulfill our idea of Christmas, because presents are replaceable; instead the idea of family and self invoked joy is what should come from Christmas because those things are irreplaceable. Or for those who aren’t religious I’m sure you’ve noticed how much of commercialized Christmas is geared towards the idea of family. So many images and stories of Christmas are centered around the family spending the holiday together. Why else would people do just about anything to get home to their family in time for Christmas? It is written in many Christmas songs you know…

I didn’t realize any of this when I was younger because all I cared about then was what and how much I was going to be getting. But now that I’m older I try to find a balance in which I appreciate the things I receive but I also know that it’s not the most important thing that happens on Christmas day; what’s most important is being with my family.

Yours Truly,
Lomax