Many years ago, when I was employed as a Nurse, I often worked on holidays. It was expected. Someone always had to. It didn’t matter if you had family or guests coming from out of town or big plans or . . .whatever. When it was your turn to work, you worked.

At Christmas, we would just pick another day and celebrate the holiday as if it were the same – same food, same decorations, same presents, same gatherings, same everything, just different day.

“It’s just a day,” I would say to my family and friends. In our memory it doesn’t make any difference whether we celebrate on a Wednesday or a Friday. The important things can all be there no matter what day we choose for the holiday.

A few years ago Gramps and I actually observed Christmas at home together one day and then took Christmas to Phoenix to celebrate with five of our grandchildren four days later. Both were real honest-to-goodness Christmases because we made them so. They had all the necessary parts plus all the extras, as every Christmas should.

Neither were celebrated on Christmas day but both are remembered as the best Christmases ever, in their own way, as every Christmas should.

I remember one Christmas when I was little, maybe about eight years old. Our Christmas day was nice, but pretty lean as far as gifts went. Magically, three days later we had a second Christmas. My parents told me and my two brothers that Santa had forgotten some gifts originally and had returned to bring them to us.

We three were thrilled! And when we told our friends in school about Santa making a second trip to our house, we were heroes! It was mystical and so exciting for a kid.

Again – not on Christmas day. I was almost an adult before I realized that my parents didn’t have the means to provide a Christmas for us until the after Christmas sales. How loving of them to take a difficulty and make it so wonderful for us. My brothers and I still talk about the year we had two Christmases.

And now, these many years later, it seems we are looking for another day to revel in our Christmas spirit. Why? Because our grandson is working on Christmas, for double pay.

He is very excited about earning so much money in one day and it’s just a day, right?

We are therefore celebrating Christmas on December 23rd with our daughter, son-in-law, grandson and two friends. The house is decorated. Gifts are wrapped. The menu is planned. There will be a fire in the fireplace. Candles will be lit. Laughter will be heard. Stories will be shared. The Story will be read.

The day will be perfect and so will our memories.