Friday, December 23, 2011

I'll Be Home for Christmas

I will be home for Christmas. The past two years have taught me a new, deeper appreciation for those words and that feeling.

In the past, Christmas meant four weeks off of school, spending just about all day at home, enjoying all the holiday cheer of Casa Navarro. Nowadays, it's work 5 days a week, no matter what week it is. And I'll get maybe 40 hours at home for the holiday. It's just not the same.

There's no place like home for the holidays, no matter how far away you roam.


I'll be heading home right after work on Friday. Spending Christmas Eve and part of Christmas Day at home before driving back for work on Monday. I'm one of the very few lucky ones in the TV business who don't have to work, let alone travel home to be with my family. My friends who aren't so lucky will be missing their families in Chicago, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Arizona, and as far as Japan. I'm blessed that Christmas falls on a weekend, and that I'm only five and a half hours from the people that care about me most.

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Christmas is nothing without the songs. Here are a pair of originals, a fun(ny) rendition, and my all time favorite.

"Donde Está Santa Claus?"
What a great song. Oh so funny, oh so accented, olé!



"I Really Don't Want Much for Christmas"
It might be nice if what the season brings could last beyond just one silent night.



Homemade caroling:



"Silver Bells"
Probably my favorite Christmas song. It sounds quiet, warm, nostalgic, friendly, anticipatory, loving-- everything Christmas is. Maybe it's just the bells in the background.


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Friends and family have been sweet and sending me Christmas cars. I love it. They line my dresser.
       

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As I've gotten older, Christmas has become less about the gifts, and more about the feeling that lasts the whole season. It's less about the presents, and more about the presence.

Really, there's nothing that I want for Christmas. I've got about all the stuff that I need. What I want is what I don't get the rest of the year, time with my family. Spent laughing, talking, eating, drinking, and just enjoying each other.

I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to doing that Saturday and Sunday.

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Merry Christmas.
I hope the holiday fills your life with love, your heart with hope, and our world with peace.

1 comment:

  1. Glad you are home, safe and sound. Looking forward to spending the next two days with you and all our family!!
    Mamacita

    ReplyDelete