My Top 5 Memories…
1. Florence Alabama Midnight service Third Grade. Our Family tradition is to go to a midnight candlelight service, so when we get out its Christmas. Our family arrived late, as usual, and so we sat on the back row. The music was gorgeous, just pretty enough to put a third grader to sleep (me) But just as silent night was at it most tender moment some guy threw an M80 Bomb in the back of the Church and it exploded. One of my friends dad’s was there and was in the marines. He sprinted out to catch the guy and tackle him….i couldn’t sleep for a week, it was the scariest thing ever.
2. After that Christmas event…we still go every year to a service…i voted to boycott until they caught the guy…
3. Memphis, TN. Spending time with Grandma. Most Christmas’s are spent at grandma’s house. We always go to the huge church downtown with her for the midnight candle light service. I was a kid still probably 5th or 6th grade. At the end of the service, you lift the candles with the minister as he says something. So we lifted our candles as he said something, then we lifted them again, and again. This guy was really into it. We kept lifting and lifting… the minister’s words became muffled and my eyes started getting heavy. Just as I was going to sleep, I dropped my candle. My sister caught it right before I caught my wonderful x-mass sweater on fire and wax fell all over me…I was so embarrassed there was a gasp they went over the crowd.
4.Most Christmas’s after the candle services, my brother and I would campout in the living room trying to catch Santa. We never could catch him…our parents were good. We were always amazed when the cookies and milk was gone and there was always a note. I think what gave my padres away was the handwriting in the note looked oddly like my mom’s every time.
5. My dad makes a huge breakfast, well every Saturday, but every Christmas as well. My pop is a stealer pancake or waffle man. Every Christmas we stuff our bellies with Christmas breakfast and coffee and homemade whip cream on top…yummmm.