The Joy of Christmas

It’s that time again. Nights in the restaurants that play Christmas music, a misty atmosphere just perfect for creative ideas, and warm drinks all day. I love wearing my new tradition of the beanie as well. Each year I get my Mom and myself this soft, warm treat. She has worn hers for three years now! We got them at a particularly hard time in life, so I think they hold a special place in our hearts.

This year is a little easier than the last two, but we are still traveling to find our place of comfort. Two years have been spent in a hotel, along with our little trees. This year is a Dollar General version. I love it. The green just speaks life and light in a place of comfort. The year before last was just as calm, and each year provides a stray kitty at the window of the hotel.

The weather has been pretty perfect for this season. Sunny cold days with colder nights. I was just speaking with my Mom concerning that unusual, magical sense you get when you’ve been outside in the cold, waiting to go to the next shopping spot, enjoying the festivity and decor of the season, and you enter the next shop. The door may have a bell if it’s a cozy dwelling, or it could be a larger department store. Either way you are met with the music, the smells, the atmosphere of winter and Christmas. I can particularly remember timer when I lived in Atlanta and went late night shopping with my parents. We would shop Macy’s which stayed open until 2 or 3am! As I stepped into the men’s department which was the bottom floor entrance, I was immediately hit with the aroma of the Starbuck’s coffee mixed with the smell of leather from the men’s jacket section. I’ve held this memory for years.

Shopping for ties in the middle of the night was pretty fun. Only part of the fun because there were Godiva’s chocolate dipped strawberries to try, restaurants to relax in, coffee breaks at the Starbucks in the center of Lenox mall. The detour took us down to Neiman Marcus where we looked but never touched. Even the wealthy wing of the mall was accessible to dreamers at Christmas. Williams and Sonoma was always a favorite stop of the season where we were met with Bing Crosby tunes or Ella Fitzgerald playing while sipping on cider samples. Across the way you could visit the cards at Papyrus, decorations and ornaments at Bloomingdales, and a swift tour through Pottery Barn or Crate and Barrel.

There was April Connell, Anthropology, angora sweaters from Wet Seal, every twenty-something’s favorite store, Restoration Hardware, an all-time favorite,all leading our tired but happy feet to the giant of the season, Macy’s. This was one of my favorite stops, passing through a girl’s dream isle of makeup and perfume. It was here the our trio would split apart, Dad going to the ties, Mom shopping more for everyone else, of course, and me being drawn into the usual jewelry and accessories department.

As great as shopping and looking was, there were always more memorable and special things such as looking up the elevator and seeing someone you knew. Year after year we would see some of the same friends in the same places. It would usual turn into a nice conversation of catch-up, memories, and what may be ahead. And as a family, it was the best of times together. My Mom, Dad and I loved to just look. We formed memories together that will never fade.

Each thing I do or make at Christmas reminds me of this happy time in my life, but each year it’s special and holds it’s own new memory. That’s what I call the Joy of Christmas.

~ McGlamorous