Merry Christmas from Type M

 by Charlotte Hinger

I'm swamped with memories this Christmas. Awash with nostalgia. Drowning in mixed emotions. And feeling guilty as usual because I can't focus on the religious connotations. 

Two joyful Christmases stand out to me. When I was five and still believed in Santa, one Christmas eve my family was snowed in at my Aunt Aura Lee's house in Garnett. We had to spend the night and I was in a state of panic because Santa would not know where we were. He surely would pass us by. I was grief-stricken. 

Sure enough Christmas morning there were toys in abundance for my cousin, Rosemary, and nary a one for me or my sister, Phiz. But the roads were clear and it was safe to drive back to our farm on the outskirts of Lone Elm, Kansas. 

My father made some excuse to go to the woodshed and came back triumphantly bearing a note from Santa that he gotten word that he should leave our presents in the shed because we had been side-tracked. With great joy my sister and I followed my father out to shed and there were two of the most beautiful dolls I've ever seen in matching high chairs. What a blissful morning. 

Another especially terrific Christmas was the one when our daughters, their spouses and husbands came to Hoxie for a whole week. My husband bought a huge fiber optic tree. Enormous, in fact. We called it Old Sparkly and plugged it in every Christmas ever after until it finally bit the dust. It was a magical time of family togetherness. 

I have many other happy memories of other Christmases, but I'm also conscious of loss. So many family members are no longer with us. I miss my husbands undiluted delight in the season. His generosity. His ability to seize the moment. I miss my sister's baking binges. My brother's look of contentment. 

Wednesday, I'll leave for Denver and spend Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with my granddaughter and son-in-law and their sweet two daughters. Naturally, my daughter, Michele and her husband, Harry will be there too. Christmas past will be set aside for the present.

Hope, Peace, and Joy to you all. Have a wonderful Christmas