{"id":14403,"date":"2024-12-25T07:00:19","date_gmt":"2024-12-25T12:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?p=14403"},"modified":"2024-12-24T15:29:35","modified_gmt":"2024-12-24T20:29:35","slug":"christmas-2024","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?p=14403","title":{"rendered":"Christmas 2024.\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"As I write these words on Christmas Eve, I\u2019m transported back to cherished memories of past Christmases. These moments, like the ghosts of Christmas Past, haunt me, making it difficult to reflect forward. I wonder, \u00a0is it possible to reflect forward, Perhaps I\u2019ll give it a try someday. The most poignant reflections are those spent on the first Christmas without a loved one, especially in 1950,1989, 2001, and 2010. However, the enduring joy of Christmas always prevails in the long run.<\/p>\n

When I was a young boy, Santa Claus would always adjust his schedule to accommodate my father\u2019s work commitments. If he was scheduled to work on Christmas Day, somehow Santa would be aware and deliver the presents under the tree on Christmas Eve while we were out in the family car, either driving around to admire Christmas displays or visiting our grandmother. It was peculiar how often our parents would remember something at the last minute and rush back into the house for a brief period before we embarked on our Christmas Eve adventure. I\u2019ll leave you to figure out the rest, but suffice it to say that when we left the house, there were no gifts under the tree, but upon our return, they were there. Naturally, when he was scheduled to work on Christmas Eve, Santa would be aware of that as well, and we would discover our gifts on Christmas morning.<\/p>\n

I have fond memories of Christmas in 1962. That was the last Christmas I spent with my Mom, Dad, and sisters just as our small family group, participating in the Christmas celebration. I remember that year fondly because it was a significant milestone in my life. I was becoming a man, had made life long friendships, and was on the cusp of a major life change. By Christmas of 1963, I had enlisted in the Navy. Although I was able to come home for Christmas occasionally, it never felt the same. I celebrated Christmas in Turkey, Germany, and even aboard a U.S. Naval vessel. But here, we simply didn\u2019t feel like we belonged. I guess Dorothy was right when she said, \u201cThere\u2019s no place like home.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s about all the time I have to reminisce. I could go on and on, but if I did, I wouldn\u2019t be able to finish this article and publish it on Christmas Day. I\u2019ve been enjoying Christmas Day for almost 8 decades now, and I plan to spend many more as I continue my life. But I didn\u2019t want to miss this opportunity to wish everyone a Merry Christmas!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As I write these words on Christmas Eve, I\u2019m transported back to cherished memories of past Christmases. These moments, like the ghosts of Christmas Past, haunt me, making it difficult to reflect forward. I wonder, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":14404,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_daextrevo_audio_file_creation_date":"","_daextrevo_text_to_speech":"","_daextrevo_document_type":"text","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14403","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nostalgia"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/townehouse.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/th122524.jpeg?fit=200%2C200&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":11941,"url":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?p=11941","url_meta":{"origin":14403,"position":0},"title":"Ghosts of Christmas Past","author":"Tom Lind","date":"December 20, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"I am sure that everyone has seen some rendition of \u201cA Christmas Carol\u201d. I have seen many versions over many years. So when I speak of Ghosts from Christmas Past, Christmas Present, and Christmas Future you will have a notion of what I am talking about. My Ghosts of Christmas\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Nostalgia"","block_context":{"text":"Nostalgia","link":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?cat=20"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/townehouse.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/painting-repro-font-b-Christmas-b-font-font-b-Village-b-font-Guaranteed-100-Free-shipping.jpg?fit=800%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/townehouse.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/painting-repro-font-b-Christmas-b-font-font-b-Village-b-font-Guaranteed-100-Free-shipping.jpg?fit=800%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/townehouse.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/painting-repro-font-b-Christmas-b-font-font-b-Village-b-font-Guaranteed-100-Free-shipping.jpg?fit=800%2C600&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/townehouse.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/painting-repro-font-b-Christmas-b-font-font-b-Village-b-font-Guaranteed-100-Free-shipping.jpg?fit=800%2C600&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":12874,"url":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?p=12874","url_meta":{"origin":14403,"position":1},"title":"Christmas May Be Cancelled!","author":"Tom Lind","date":"December 20, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Reports have been coming in from the North Pole that there are serious issues developing between Santa Clause and certain factions of the Christmas Elves that may put the Christmas toy distribution project in jeopardy.\u00a0 Threats of an attempt coup of the Santa Organization have surfaced.\u00a0 \u00a0Although it is unclear\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Humor"","block_context":{"text":"Humor","link":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?cat=18"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/townehouse.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/15418389_10210104106671655_2393119535432359370_o.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1216,"url":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?p=1216","url_meta":{"origin":14403,"position":2},"title":"Christmas Elves Threaten National Security","author":"Tom Lind","date":"December 16, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"In the past, the Townehouse phoenix has provided expose\u00b4 articles regarding common Christmas traditions that most take for granted. In the past the real story behind Rudolph and Frosty were brought to you first by the Phoenix. In keeping with the tradition of past Christmases, the Townehouse Phoenix, as a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Humor"","block_context":{"text":"Humor","link":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?cat=18"},"img":{"alt_text":"evilelf","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/townehouse.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/evilelf-150x150.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":300,"url":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?p=300","url_meta":{"origin":14403,"position":3},"title":"Merry Christmas!","author":"Tom Lind","date":"December 25, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"I want to take this opportunity and to use this venue to wish all who read this a very Merry Christmas. Just in case you are wondering, I am not sitting in front of my computer writing this article on Christmas morning. What type of a grinch do you think\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Commentary"","block_context":{"text":"Commentary","link":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?cat=13"},"img":{"alt_text":"Peace On Earth","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/townehouse.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/12\/nativity-siloutte080-150x150.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":295,"url":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?p=295","url_meta":{"origin":14403,"position":4},"title":"Christmas Eve Crime Alert!","author":"Tom Lind","date":"December 22, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Police agencies locally, nationally, and around the world are gearing up for an anticipated crime spree of home invasions, criminal damaging, and animal cruelty. We spoke with Chief Hille of the Candyland Police Department (CPD) who feels that due to innovative policing there is a good chance the \"perp\" will\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Miscellaneous"","block_context":{"text":"Miscellaneous","link":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?cat=19"},"img":{"alt_text":"PERSON OF INTERST","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/townehouse.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/12\/Evil_Santa1-150x150.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":12885,"url":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?p=12885","url_meta":{"origin":14403,"position":5},"title":"Christmas \u2013 2019","author":"Tom Lind","date":"December 25, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"To my family and friends and all other readers of the Townehouse, here are a few thoughts I have had about Christmas over the past few days.\u00a0 I would like to share them with all of you.\u00a0 Sharing this article with you is my Christmas present to you all.\u00a0 I\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Commentary"","block_context":{"text":"Commentary","link":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?cat=13"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/townehouse.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/merry-christmas-2019-text-with-elegant-vector-22962599.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p38YRh-3Kj","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14403","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14403"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14403\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14406,"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14403\/revisions\/14406"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/14404"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14403"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=14403"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=14403"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}