We’re starting to get into the Christmas season with the Santa Claus Parade happening this weekend. However, until it snows and sticks it always seems a little bit too early. For us, growing up, we didn’t care that much for Christmas. We would all go to church and we’d have a Christmas tree and everything. However, in the Netherlands, we celebrated Sinterklaas not Santa Claus and he came on Dec. 5 not the 24th. This meant that as kids Christmas was kind of the “lame” holiday between Sinterklaas and New Years. Sinterklaas is what “really” kicked off the holiday season, much like the Santa Parade will I’m sure.
New Years in my hometown, came with an inordinate amount of fireworks. The days up to New Years were the only time of year it was legal, but for those few days, there was an excessive commital. There’d be campaigns on the TV about people missing fingers. I’m pretty sure a car got burned out close to us when I was a teenager and at one point a large rocket ended up going off in someone’s home. My uncle also managed to burn down the neighbour’s hedge at one point.
As kids, they generally kept us away from the big stuff but as teenagers, we’d definitely manage to get our hands on firecrackers etc. and probably shouldn’t have (at one point we put one in a snowball and threw it through our friend’s bedroom window).
For my wife, Christmas was always a very magical experience, somehow. Even now she could just sit and stare at a dressed up Christmas tree for a long time.
This holiday season is the first time going through it as a parent with a kid who might be able to appreciate the experience. Even if he doesn’t, I’m sure that my wife will take it as an excuse to go all out regardless and that’s a little scary. It’s started already with the endless stream of classic Christmas music in her car, which my son has been enjoying, further reinforcing the behaviour. Soon it will migrate into the house and before I know it, it will all be red and green with endless Christmas music inside the house as well. My main concern, however, is that once the Christmas tree is up, I’ll spend all of my time keeping him from climbing it and eating needles. Oh well at least he’d be eating something green.
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