As I make my way through adulthood, I start to grow nostalgic of my younger years. I never appreciated how great it was to be a child during the holiday season. My mom always signed my name on presents that I never purchased for my extended family. I sat at the kid’s table and didn’t have to brace a meaningless conversation with my weird uncle. I was never asked, “So what are your plans after school?” by every aunt and uncle that I hardly know. The holiday traditions I experienced as a kid are leaving me and consequently I’ve been reflecting on my childhood and the holidays.
1. Waking your parents up early Christmas morning
Since I was old enough to walk and understand what Christmas was, my siblings and I would wake up at the crack of dawn to open presents. We would quietly wake each other up and then rush to our parents’ bedroom announcing Christmas morning. Now I already know what presents are under the tree and the excitement I once had is nearly nonexistent. My siblings are in college or graduated, and we typically open presents when we can schedule a time to see each other.
2. Making Christmas lists
It could just be me, but I took my Christmas wish lists very seriously. I would make the list at least a month in advance and continuously edit it as Christmas Day neared. My parents would put my list in an envelope and address it to Santa and “send it out” themselves. Now my mom texts me asking me what I want for Christmas when I’m in a chem lab and I’ll typically reply with money or some electronic device that has a price that exceeds my college budget.
3. The kids’ table
When I was in middle school, sitting at the kid’s table was easily the most annoying part of the holidays. I considered myself a mature adult back then and felt like I was being treated like a child. Now that I actually sit at the adult table, I look at the kids’ table longing to have simple conversations that don’t involve politics or my future. There was a much smaller age gap at the kids’ table and we could all relate to each other. Unfortunately, now I almost have to yell for my grandma to hear me.
4. Holiday parades
Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and Disney’s Christmas Parade were somehow more exciting to me as a kid. We would have the parades playing on Thanksgiving morning and Christmas morning while we opened presents or prepared Thanksgiving dinner. I would perch myself as close to the TV as I could get and wait for Snoopy and SpongeBob to make their appearances. I don’t even remember the last time I watched either parade in its entirety.
5. No responsibility for holiday dinners
Holiday meals with my family were the best when I was younger because my cousins and I would run around and play instead of prepping for dinner. Once I transitioned to the adult table, I also transitioned to dinner duty. Instead of watching whatever sporting event was on TV with the other kids or playing hide and seek, I’m now making sautéed green beans or gravy with the rest of the adult table members.
6. New Year’s celebrations
Staying up to celebrate the New Year was a challenge as a kid, but it was still the best way to end the holiday season. We would all sit as a family watching Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve and deciding who had the best performance. If I somehow managed to stay awake, my family and I would run outside and bang pots and pans to celebrate the New Year. Now I find myself at some New Year’s party without my family celebrating with champagne and a kiss instead of pots and pans.
The holiday season will always be the most wonderful time of the year no matter your age. It’s the time to hang with family, be thankful, and give to others. Despite the changes in tradition as we grow older, I will always love the holidays and what comes with them.