My mother passed away in the 1980s at the age of 42. My father started the tradition shortly after my mother passed away to have some special memories of having Christmas Eve brunch with him, myself, and my 3 other siblings. That tradition lasted about 13 or 14 years till my father passed away in 2002 at the age of 64.
Myself and my brother and sisters kept it going for quite a few years later till our kids came along. At that time, trying to coordinate four families on Christmas Eve got a little tougher, with everybody going their separate ways.
But for me, looking back on those times with my dad and the 4 of us kids, it didn’t seem as special to me then as it does now. If I would have known I was only going to get a limited amount of time, I would have taken pictures so I would have had something to look back on. I thought it was going to keep going for another 15 or 20 years.
I can say as I sit here writing this, remembering sitting there with my family laughing, Joking, just having a great time, there will always be some great memories. You can’t beat having a great family time and great food. Those memories I will always cherish. Thanks, Shady Maple, for providing me with those great memories. – Jeffrey J.