Festivus is Among Us

Here at the ATX Phillips house we don't really go down the Christmas-crazy road this time of year. I do have very fond memories of Christmas as a kid, probably more the tradition and anticipation of the big morning. Since I could remember, we would spend Christmas eve at the Fagan's with everyone we really knew at that time. Then off to church, home to open one gift and then the wait for Christmas morning. For many, many years we had one set or the other of grand parents that would come over to Roswell and spend Christmas, which would always add another layer of the familiness of Christmas to the event. But the reassuring of the season was always in the bonding of the family and those families that we were close with.

But now that we don't have kids or nephews/nieces, or really spend much time around people that have kids, Christmas takes on a different role. We have started to gravitate towards Festivus. As described by Wikipedia, "Celebrants of the holiday sometimes refer to it as "Festivus for the rest of us", a saying taken from the O'Keefe family traditions and popularized in the "Seinfeld" episode to describe Festivus as "another way" to celebrate the season without participating in its pressures and commercialization." Our gift giving takes place over a number of days and is always kept to a minimum, often without wrapping. We will of course have Christmas morning with my parents in Kerrville this year which will be followed by a brunch with some of their neighbors and friends. Again more of what I look forward to.

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Festivus to all!