I f-ing love Christmas. Not as much as I used to - not because of age, but rather the absence of my parents - but I still get giddy about it. Only September, you say? Yes, but Saturday was September 25th and I can hear my mom smiling and yelling out, "Only three months 'til Christmas!" She would start this countdown in July, the broaching of the year's halfway point making it appropriate to look forward to a holiday five months away. It wasn't about commercialism, though both my parents did love giving gifts (because they enjoyed making people happy). Mom loved the spirit, the general joy in the air; the anticipations; preparations; and the music. Definitely the music. When we were young she would play Christmas tapes in the car all year long, but as we (and she) got older she mainly kept it to the six week holiday period. I don't do the countdown anymore, but when I cook something that smells and tastes like Christmas, it's like I inadvertently have.
