The Warm Season

My favorite method for recalling Christmas memories is using a technique I learned while acting called "sense memory." That is, applying a feeling or emotion one has experienced in the past to a situation in the present. Try, with me, to recapture some of those feelings of Christmases past, when we, as children, enjoyed the winter -- before, as adults, our backs reflected pains of shoveling snow, or our minds rebelled at the thought of putting chains on our tires, or even driving on the icy roads, or we complained about putting on our galoshes (with buckles or zippers), heavy coats, scarves, ear muffs (remember those?), gloves, and hats... before we moved down to Florida to escape.

It is said, "We can never go back," and it's true. Things are never the same, except in our memories.

Remember walking to school through snow drifts that were up to our waists? (The easy way, of course, would have been to walk on the sidewalks, reasonably cleared off by horse-drawn wooden plows.) And remember, after arriving home from school, coming in the house with our clothes all wet from tumbling in the snow? I can recall wringing my gloves out, they were so wet, then putting them on the radiator. (Remember those cast-iron radiators?) The next day, the gloves would be stiff as a board. And how our hands would ache from the cold -- we used to run cold water from the faucet over them to thaw out.

And those impractical woolen mittens that, after being used to make snowballs, would have clumps of snow clinging to them... can you see them? Snowmen, snow forts, ice-skating, the masses of youngsters waiting, the masses of youngsters waiting for the ponds to freeze over with a layer thick enough to support all the enjoyment... then going to the adjoining lodge to drink hot chocolate... and the sounds of ice skate blades on the wooden floor of the lodge -- I can hear them.

The senses recall the taste and feel of icicles snapped from a low hanging eave. Remember how carefully you had to crack them off so they would remain intact?

I can remember walking through the cold winter air, breathing its purity, and looking at the stars, on my way to my favorite hill for some sleigh riding, never minding the long walk up the hill because of the thought of the thrilling ride going down, the air turning our faces a healthy pink.

And Christmas -- Christmas had a meaning for me then similar to today. Not having a Christian background, Christmas for me was vacation from school, the fun of winter, and presents. I liked to walk down the sidewalk at night and look at the lights of the Christmas trees and their reflections in the snow. It was kind of a lonely feeling, yet warm. And today, with children -- my children -- the fun of giving them fun, Christmas is nice.