Christmas from Afar

Like so many others in the Airline Industry, (and military for that matter) I spent Christmas 2008 separated from the ones I love. No pity party here, just the reality of my new chosen career, with little chance of being at home during holidays. As it turns out, others in my family circle had a subdued Christmas too.

As mentioned in last week's post, Cathy and Nikki were able to get away and head up to Alberta to spend Christmas with her Brother Randy, his wife Rose, and their children Justin, Michael, Cassandra, and Jacqueline (oh, and Emmie...Nikki HAS to have a playmate). They had a traditional Newfoundland-style Christmas, with presents, "Jig's Dinner", and simply enjoying being together. If you have never had the pleasure of a Jig's Dinner, imagine a traditional turkey dinner with all of the trimmings, then add some salt beef (complete misnomer...it should be salt fat), figgy duff, and peas pudding, and you've got a Jig's Dinner. By the way, here's a quick lesson for you Yanks out there...Newfoundland is pronounced "NEWfoundland", accent on the first syllable. Most Americans incorrectly pronounce it newFOUNDland. In any case, it is a beautiful place with wonderful warm people, but questionable food. They do have some damn good fish and chips though, even if they do put stuffing and gravy on them!

I was able to speak with both Jamie and Brandon today on the phone. They are with their Mother in Florida, and enjoyed a day at Universal Studios and saw the Blue Man Group. By all accounts they had a fun day. Brandon has decided to attend UCF Engineering when he is released from the Army this Spring, and Cathy and I are excited for him to start down this new path. Jamie is concerned because she works for her fiance's family flooring business, and with the economy the way it is, business is down. Like many others in America, all who work with her are concerned about their jobs and their future.

My Mom and Dennis in Lacey Washington had a non-Traditional Christmas, in that my Sister Lisa and her husband Scott were not able to come up. Normally Mom is praying for a white Christmas, and this year she got her wish, so much so that her and Dennis were pretty much snowed in. They tried to get out of the house for a drive, but almost got stuck. Thankfully neighbors helped get them back in the driveway. Lisa and Scott live in Oregon, and they were thinking of driving down to spend the day with Scott's family. Unfortunately, more snow and ice put the kibosh on that idea, and because Scott's son Sean is spending Christmas with his Mom in California, Lisa and Scott spent a quiet Christmas at home, watching movies and enjoying each other's company, and likely worrying way too much about things they can't control, like the economy, and bad weather that keeps them from family, friends and work.

As for the Fledgling Flyer, I spent the day recovering from the effects of eating a Christmas Eve Chinese dinner. There were about a dozen of my fellow class mates who were spending Christmas here in the hotel, and I thought it would be a good idea to get together with some friends and go out and eat a nice dinner somewhere last night. Unfortunately, I found that almost every restaurant closed around 4:00, so we ended up in the only place open, a Mom and Pop Chinese place. Unfortunately, within an hour of eating I ended up with the "green apple quick steps", or more correctly, the "hot and sour soup quick steps". Melly Cleesmas!

So, today I emptied the stocking Cathy sent me, tearfully read her Christmas card, studied flight controls, hydraulics, navigation, and FMS, talked on the phone with loved ones and friends (thanks for calling Gord, it was GREAT to hear from you!), and swore off Chinese food. I also reflected a lot, and decided that even though we say that Christmas is about being with family, it is not. Christmas is about Christ, and his birth, and all of the things that Christianity is. Yes, Christianity is usually thought of as a family affair, but being a good person can be a solo affair too. Not being with Cathy, my children, or the others in my life that I love does not in any way diminish the importance of the day; yes we can be sad for being apart, but Christmas is still Christmas, and even though apart, we each had a day that was in our own way blessed. Hopefully you did too.

Merry Christmas, God Bless, and remember the ones less fortunate than we!