Mail and Christmas

First, I will share some of the mail I have received recently. I watched Miracle on 34th Street for the first time a few days ago, which provides another reason to appreciate the Post Office.

There are a several cards my parents got addressed to the entire family. However, these cards are addressed to me. The card with the Campanile is from the College of Letters and Science at Berkeley. It is from the Deans of the different divisions and reads "Your generosity lights the way to a future of unlimited possibilities." The odd thing is I do not remember giving any money to Letters and Science. Not pictured is a card from my Congressman that is unafraid to declare "we celebrate the Birth of Jesus."

Christmas in my parents' house
It would not be in the spirit of Christmas to say a lot of bad things. The short version is my family needs to grow up (in some ways I need to as well). My parents want to have the type of Christmas our family had 20 years ago. Trying to fit the realities of today into the mold of Christmases of decades past does not work. It makes this the low point of my year, not the joyous time it was created to be.

I want to move my life forward, and the people around me want to turn the clock back. I want to be happy on Christmas, which means changing my expectations based on the situation and the time people put into things. The people around me think everything will magically go like years past. However, their grumpiness and crying are not signs of happiness.

If Christmas is not a joyous time for you, you are doing something wrong. For me, the problem is the people I am around. There was a lot of concern in my parents' house over what food we would eat, what cookies would be baked, when decorations would go up, which decorations would go where, who would get Christmas cards, and what presents people would get. Poor planning and terrible communication led to a lot of last minute work. After all of that, there was little left for joy. What we really needed was to have a Whoville Christmas.

The problem is not Christmas, but my family. These are all manifestations of problems that have been on display for the last couple of years. I have tried to help out, but they are not taking steps to improve themselves. I need to remove myself from this situation. I should not ignore my own responsibilities and wants to keep them afloat.