Just a few years before I was born, my paternal grandfather died on Christmas Eve. I was the only one of the kids who never met him, though my cousin Debbie wouldn't remember him since she was only about six weeks old at the time.

After that, we always spent Christmas Eve with my paternal grandmother--usually a full feast including turkey and dressing--and Christmas Day with my maternal grandparents--more low-key, and in later years featuring soup (Mitch called it Nanny's Good Soup), chili and beans.

Those days are long gone now, but I'll always cherish them. We kept up the tradition as long as we could, but as grandparents and parents died and kids scattered, it was just too hard to do, and new traditions replaced the old.

Mine for several years has been to spend the day with friends and/or cats I'm sitting; 2022 (when my car was totaled by a guy coming the wrong way out of a McDonald's parking lot as I was coming off the interstate) and 2024 (after I broke and dislocated my left elbow and wrist) weren't great holidays, but they're memorable and cherished by me because they highlighted the kindness of my circle of friends (because, believe me, I can be a lot sometimes). I'm spending this Christmas with the Queen Bees, Phoebe and Ruby, and am........

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