Christmas

When I was a kid, this time of the year would be the worst for me. I was a Jewish kid, who didn't usually have a lot of Jewish friends, stuck in what seemed like Christian land x1000000 during the holidays. Everywhere you looked, there was Santa, and pine trees, and "O Holy Night" and shit. I was miserable.

And worse. My birthday is December 22nd, so it always got lumped in with the holidays. Winter meant my birthday ohandHannukahandnewyearsandkwanza and G-d knows what else. I couldn't even have my special time and it was being overshadowed by giant socks hung on mantels, and gross pink hams stuck all over with cloves, and eggnog, which has got to be the nastiest thing on the planet. No thanks.

Then when I got older, half of my friends had divorced parents, so the holidays meant they'd go running off somewhere ELSE and leave me alone for my birthday! Lissa, I'm looking at you!!!

It wasn't cool.

They had presents piled under a tree... we hardly ever got the religiously guaranteed 8. Now my parents very kindly still get me a gift certificate, which is lovely and I thank them. But it's no sipping-apple-cider and singing-carols-in-harmony.

Although, who am I kidding? My job and various bosses haven't been willing to consider giving me a holiday off since I was 22. So I'd be more bitter, missing that awesome stuff.

Then there's Thanksgiving. Oh, Thanksgiving. It was a quiet one this year... and I partially ruined it by getting a massive migraine just as we were preparing to sit down and eat. Within minutes, I couldn't think or function. And I worked 12 hours before that. You're probably saying "That's horrible! Sounds like one of the worst days ever!"

But I loved the crap out of it. People at work were in good moods, easygoing and laughing and having fun - the stories we put on air were a little softer, a little happier. Sure, there was the guts and gore that always comes with working in my field, and that's just how it goes, but things had a rosier tint. And they catered a full turkey dinner for lunch, so nobody went without tasting sweet potatoes and pumpkin pie and stuffing. It was lovely, and sweet, and I didn't mind being there one iota. It's weird to say, but it's true. I like what I do.

I may be bitter about not being in the religious majority in this country, and that will always be a teensy little issue, but I love what people become during the holidays. The warmth escapes just a little more... they look forward to seeing family, and welcoming new babies to the fold. They knit scarves and hats and bundle up to trudge through snow to grandma's house. I may live in a city where it never snows, but it gets chilly, and that's enough for me. I love walking outside at the end of the night and smelling fireplaces in the air. Roasted chesnuts... hot chocolate... mittens. They're all such wonderful things.

And people remember, at this time of year, to be grateful for all of it. It's a good thing to be grateful. I have learned to be more grateful - and not ridiculous over something I don't have, or something I'm not getting. Because really, I have all of it. I have love, and scarves, and hot cocoa. I have a roof over my head, and a fridge full of food, and a closet full of clothing. It would be absurd for me to wonder at something I lack. I lack nothing, and the holidays have all turned from bitterness to sweet.