Last year my children announced they’d spend Christmas with their significant others--and their families. I wasn’t surprised, but I was disappointed. And I had a feeling this one choice for Christmas would be the beginning of a tradition. And that made me angry.
How dare my children choose another family over their own for Christmas? How could they do that to me? Oh sure, maybe next year they’d choose me—but then again, they might not. Was I going to spend the rest of my Christmas holidays by myself? Oh, sure, John would be there. But did he really count?
That’s when I invented Operation Christmas Spirit. I booked an air bed and breakfast near the kids in Texas, to make sure they’d come. Christmas was on a Monday, so I chose December 15, 16, and 17. The kids agreed to attend, despite their busy big city lives. Then I sprang into action.
We already had a six-foot-tall Christmas tree from holidays past. I hopped on to Pinterest and found instructions for making decorations out of paper, pretzels, ribbons, and other inexpensive yet festive items. I purchased discount Christmas aprons and dug out my holiday cookie cutters. I even scoured Amazon for a cookie press, and ran to Dollar Tree for a few crafts.
I enlisted the kids’ help by asking each couple to prepare a favorite side dish and dessert from their childhood. I asked them to bring a game or two, and to mix up some cookie dough. Fun fact: you can’t use the same recipe for cookie cutter cookies and press cookies!
The kids arrived on Friday evening and we put up the tree. Gracie and Kat spent the evening making decorations and putting them on the tree. I’d brought a Nativity scene and a dozen or so green plastic Army men. When Nathan was a child, he’d arranged his soldiers around the baby Jesus to protect him from King Herod. A tradition was born, but somehow, we’d stopped observing it. Operation Christmas Spirit brought it back, and my men spent as much time arranging the troops as the ladies spent decorating the tree.
Saturday morning, we shared the kitchen and prepared our Christmas feast. Afterwards, we went around the room and told our favorite childhood Christmas memory. We opened gifts, baked cookies and made Christmas crafts. We took it easy Saturday evening, eating leftovers and watching Christmas movies. Sunday morning, we said our goodbyes, and everyone agreed it was the best weekend we’d spent together in a long time. A week later I sent a photo album to each couple of all our photos. I still go back and look at those moments captured forever. Cameron and Gracie with arms crossed over silly aprons, striking poses with a rolling pin and a spatula. Kat snuggling in Nathan’s arms with a smile of pure joy on her face. My father curled up on the couch with a blanket and a cup of coffee.
When the children left home, I missed putting up the tree with them, baking cookies, and making crafts. But doing all those things on December 23 (or later) seemed ridiculous. Operation Christmas Spirit gives me the chance to do all those lovely things with my kids again, and the loves of their lives. We voted to do it again this year, and I can’t wait!
Jann Goar Franklin graduated Russellville High School in 1985 and lives in Grand Cane, Louisiana. She also writes books, which are for sale at www.jannfranklin.com. You can reach her at jann@jannfranklin.com