Nostalgic Czeched

If there was a thing called certified Christmas addict, I am such. I get so pumped up as it gets nearer and nearer. I love singing and listening to Christmas carols. I love looking at the bright colored trees, houses and streets. I just love everything about this season. The only downside is that I abhor the stress that shopping for presents brings. I also get nostalgic with the mere thought of Christmas. How can something as beautiful as my Christmas memories make me sad?

Let's travel back down memory lane. I'm taking you to my town 20 and something years ago when everything was as uncomplicated as my childhood. Back then nobody had a TV and only a very few families were lucky enough to own a Betamax. Our family wasn't one of them so my chilhood was about climbing trees, playing with friends and lots of imaginative plays. You could say it was an ordinary life even for a kid but life changed dramatically the moment September came.

Yes, September is (un)officially the start of Christmas in P.I. The excitement builds up as the day comes nearer. Even if I hated it when my Mom ordered us to clean every nook and cranny of the house till it shone, I didn't dare refuse much less pout because it only meant we would be decorating the entire house with Christmast blings. I also remember one of my most favorite times was lying on the floor with my feet up on the humongous AC-DC stereo, tapping them to the beat of Jingle Bells and other Christmas carols. It seemed like my entire year was spent looking forward to Christmas again.

I don't remember how old I was when I knew Santa's real identity. How I knew I don't remember. What I can recall was that day my parents asked me to make a list of the things I wanted from him. I started writing "bike" (I learned how to write when I was very young. My Mom was a teacher.) when Mom said maybe it was too heavy for Santa to carry and that maybe I should only ask for things that he can put in his sack. Didn't I tell you my Mom was clever and I got this trait from her? :)

One of the best things I also remember was the fact that we had a long Christmas break, like over 15 days. I loved school but I also loved just playing in the rain or trying to catch fish in swamps or even in huge potholes filled with water. Most of the time we would catch only leeches. I freaked out everytime.

Food was the greatest luxury Christmas gave to me. We were not poor but cakes and sweets were nonexistent until Christmas. This was the time of the year when I can pig out and there would still be a lot of food left on the table. And the parties my parents tagged me along to attend were both awesome and hilarious for me. Awesome in the sense that older people were simply different and they could do things I couldn't. Hilarious because the women would end up crying all the time especially while singing a Christmas song, any Christmas song. This was funny and also a mystery to me back then. Now I know why. Nostalgia and middle age, it's a fatal combination that would lead to a tidal wave of emotion you simply cannot contain to yourself.

I can see clearly now that I'm indeed my mother's daughter. I got not just her obsessive-compulsive side but also her melodramatic tendencies. Christmas is the time when I can't sometimes contain these tendencies I just let them all out. One time I was walking down Namesti Miru when I heard a Christmas song and I was on the verge of crying. Nostalgia is of course a bittersweet feeling. Sometimes the happiest memories are best relived and expressed in tears.

(Above pic: The huge Christmas tree inside Centrum Chodov. )