I would like to wish all of my Mayberry Digest friends a most blessed and wonderful Christmas. Although I know most of you by name only and it is probable that we will never meet in person, I still consider you my friends and I appreciate the daily connection we have.
Christmas when I was a child was a Christmas without the hustle and bustle. We had no malls and we received no gift cards. We didn't spend time traveling to all corners of the country to visit our family. Our family was no further away than a few minutes drive at most. Mom spent time in the kitchen making simple Christmas cookies and we always cut down our own real tree. It was adorned by simple ornaments that we had had for many years and those long tinsel icicles were a must on every tree. The only Christmas music we heard were those carols played on our one AM radio and any Christmas programs on TV were seen in black and white. Santa Claus was very real to us as we were still innocent of the many hard realities of life. We went to bed on Christmas Eve covered with thick blankets and heavy coats because we didn't have central heat. Quite often there were two of us in a bed which helped keep us warm. None of my friends or relatives were well off so none of us expected much for Christmas, but what we received was cherished for a long time. No one delivered a free meal to our door and no one took me shopping or brought free gifts to our door even though there were four of us without a father. We spent hours looking through the Montgomery Wards or Alden's Christmas Wish Book that came in the mail, even though we knew that most of the toys we saw would remain just something to dream about. When I see all the glitter and lights and frantic crowds all glamoring to get the best deals only to pay for them with credit cards that they can't afford to use, I long for those long forgotten Christmases of my childhood. Christmas in a small Wisconsin town covered with snow 50 years ago was very special. Christmas was simple, they were sort lived, but they were very special. And I would give anything to be able to relive just one of them again. Merry Christmas Everyone and God Bless Each and Everyone One of You -- Ken Anderson The Mayberry Guru 2906 May Street Eau Claire, Wisconsin 54701 www.themayberryguru.com www.mayberryreflections.com _______________________________________________ WBMUTBB mailing list [email protected] http://www.mayberry.com/tagsrwc/wbmutbb/
