Thursday, December 25, 2008

A humbug comes for Christmas


I recently posted about my dad being a bit of a humbug. Very much an understatement. I love my dad but Christmas seems to bring out the worst in him.

I understand some of it. Being alone during the holidays cannot be easy. But even when I was little, he was not even close to jolly. I wish he could understand the impact his mood has on the people around him.

So...I invited him to spend Christmas day with us. I figured the lure of grandkids would be too much and he would come and be good for their sakes. He gave me a lot of grief, though. I dropped by Christmas Eve with a few things I had helped him shop for and he said he wasn't coming. He knew I was headed to Mom's and that probably made it worse. I, of course, resorted to tears and a little drama and he finally promised to come. I was worried, though, that he would blame the weather, or his health and just not show up.

But he did! And I think he had a really good day. The kids brought him his stocking and he actually opened his gifts! If you know my father, you know that this is huge! When we were younger, as everyone else was opening presents, he would sit with his pile beside him and refuse to open until everyone begged him to do so. Grandkids work miracles! He spent the day playing with Mason, who thinks "Grampy" is the bomb. He put together his new big wheel, so he is definitely tops on Mason's list of favorite people.

I love my father dearly. He has his issues, but I experienced great joy watching him with my children this Christmas day. So very glad he decided to ditch the humbug...

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