It's Just What I Wanted

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How fortunate am I to be able to watch my children open up their presents each year and exclaim that whatever gift they got is exactly what they had their heart set on?

For me,there is plenty to be thankful for, and I could handle that without even opening one present. I'm thankful that my wife can do the wrapping. I'm thankful that I still have a job to go to so that we can make the kids smile. I'm real happy that I'm a Yankee fan and that this year we got three presents instead of the usual two.

All of it aside, I couldn't help but think of homes where the celebration isn't so pronounced. We spent Christmas Eve with my parents and brother and sisters, and by the end of the night, my face hurt from laughing. How fortunate am I to have my parents around to share my children with?

Today we're going to the out-laws, as my Uncle Jim calls them, and there will be more of a celebration and a lot more laughs. While it was a year of challenges, it was also a year of togetherness, and I rue the day when I forget how lucky we are to all still be here, relatively healthy, and with a ton of food waiting in the other room.

I ran into a guy on a job the other day and I made a passing comment about how I wish he gets what he wants for Christmas - this guy was about twenty, and he sort of snorted when I said it.

"We stopped getting presents in my family when we turned ten. My father thought it was all nonsense."

"Wow, that's weak," I said.

"It's just another day," he answered. "It's a day off without pay for me. We aren't all as lucky as you are," he finished.

"No, I guess you're not," I thought as I walked away, but I couldn't help but think of him this morning as I opened a gift from the boys.

Hopefully somebody got that kid something he wanted today.

Merry Christmas! Remember - God gave me everything I want, but it's always fun to open a gift.

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