Merry Christmas!

Finally, here in the Southeast hills of North Carolina the temperatures are beginning to fall and it's at least beginning to feel like Christmas. Up until about a week ago we were still pushing eighty degrees some days. There is not much hope of a white Christmas but at least we won't be running around in shorts and tank tops. When this article hits the Web we will have seven days left until Christmas. I think I am as excited as my kids are.

I am looking forward to the new memories that will be made as well as looking back on memories past. There have been so many Christmases where I have gotten up at the crack of dawn after having been up half the night so as not to miss the faces of my children when they first realized Santa had came. If I go back even further I can remember lying in my own bed as a child wondering how I would ever go to sleep while fearing that if I didn't Santa wouldn't come.

When I was much younger Christmas in my mind revolved around me. It was a time of thinking about what I wanted and what I would get. Fortunately, the hard work of my parents of trying to instill some values and decency into me began to pay dividends. I can honestly say that my greatest excitement now comes from giving rather than getting at Christmas. Besides, I already have been given so much this year. This past year I have watched my oldest daughter graduate high school. I saw my 17-year-old get her license and become much more serious about school. I watched my son play football and take Latin in school and actually like it, and my youngest girl dazzle me with her dance recitals and quick wit. There are many happy memories to look back on this year.

While there has been much gained, there has been loss as well. This year saw the passing of my sister's father-in-law, a dear man who lived each day to the fullest while battling cancer with a sincere kindness and work ethic that I can only aspire to. Also, this year we lost my uncle in a freak accident. He was a little rough around the edges but once you got past that exterior he was one of the deepest people I have known. My heart goes out to my aunt and cousins who are so bravely trying to cope with his death.

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