Holiday Notes

Since the beginning of the Christmas season – that is, right after Thanksgiving – I’ve surrounded myself with Christmas cheer. I’ve tuned my radio to an “all Christmas all the time” station to help me usher in the season of joy and wonder. CV Weekly hosted its annual pre-Christmas parade open house and my son purchased a Christmas tree and had it neatly installed in our living room.

Sadly, there are certain things that I haven’t done this year. No outdoor Christmas lights were put up and, once again, I didn’t send out Christmas cards. (I think the last time I did was in the ’90s – really.) However, for the first time ever, I attended Christmas dinner at the American Legion Hall Friday night along with 75 or more vets and vet-friendly families. Being that our son, Danny, is graduating this week from Air Force basic training, the Goldsworthys are considered family and were treated as such on Friday night.

A feast had been prepared of turkey, ham and all the fixings. The room was full of laughter and good cheer – it was really nice to be included in the fun. Thank you to the American Legion and VFW for inviting me to this gathering.

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I must admit that, in addition to no outside lights put up and no Christmas cards sent, I also was lacking this holiday season in attending church. For me, this was a dumb move. Attending church (again, for me) helps to prepare me for the sacredness of Christmas time and remind me of “the reason for the season.” Let’s face it: there are few secular things that bring up the name of Christ when hawking holiday goods. And it’s easy to get inundated with “buy this” and “got to have that.” So I encourage you to take a minute and remind yourself what the foundation is of Christmas – it’s a promise and a time of excitement.

Merry Christmas.

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Finally, I made mention earlier in this column that this week my son Danny is graduating from Air Force basic training. Some of the family (including me) are flying out to San Antonio, Texas to celebrate his completion of basic training and to learn how he spent the last eight weeks. I’ve never been to Texas but the excitement of seeing The Lone Star State pales in comparison to seeing my son wearing his uniform and dog tags.

I’ll share with you next week how that trip goes.

  robin goldsworthy