Christmas Eve in Times Square

So what does Christmas mean to you? I have not celebrated Christmas in years. I cannot remember the last time I celebrated Christmas. I do not decorate my apartment. In fact, if you were to walk through my apartment there are no signs of Christmas what so ever. There is no tree and no Christmas cards hanging from the refrigerator.
The Christmas cards I do receive I read and throw out. I send very few cards myself. Those I do send go to my brother and his family.

It’s not that I dislike Christmas; I am totally neutral about the whole thing. I hate shopping for gifts and do as little of it as possible. I don’t mind receiving a gift but I am neutral on this also. Most gifts are nice but I can live without them. I appreciate the thought though, since I don’t really like thinking about other people I know how hard this thought can be.

Christmas is for children. I like to see young children enjoy their gifts and get excited about Santa. My younger niece and nephew come to mind. They are real believers and there is something magical about that complete confidence in Christmas that makes me smile. See, I am actually smiling.

I hate visiting people for Christmas, even though they have been very kind to invite me to their homes to celebrate the holiday. I like being alone at Christmas, but for many years I have worked on Christmas Day, as today and I have not had the option to visit or not to visit.

I am not religious so the spiritual side of Christmas barely registers with me. I like walking the quiet streets in New York or Hoboken at Christmas. I like to take a run on Christmas Day. When I see people hurrying through the streets with Christmas presents packed into large brown bags, I often wonder where they are rushing.

I try to think of the less fortunate at Christmas but I do nothing about their plight. I am not any more generous at Christmas than at any other time of year. There is plenty of room for improvement there.

I have fond memories of Christmas growing up. I like the fake white tree with its paint by number colored limbs, which made it easy to build. I liked going into the attic as a child and pulling down all those brown cardboard boxes full of tinsel and ornaments. I liked sitting on the sofa and watching the Sound of Music on television, eating as many sweets as I could manage. I have not given up on these traditions.

These memories are Christmas to me.