I love the holidays. LED lights and soft piano music seem to make the winter a more bearable time. The icy sidewalks and frosty breath seem to be part of the charm, though I know that come January I’ll feel slightly less amiable about it.
A Christmas in Newfoundland, like many places, is a time for drinking copiously with family and eating unhealthy amounts of potatoes, boiled carrots, cabbage, ham or turkey with gravy, pea soup, and sweets (of course) like fruitcake and chocolates. My family’s tradition has remained pretty much the same for the last 20 years. The funny thing is that the traditions don’t seem so apparent until you are missing them.
In 2008, I spent Christmas Eve night dancing at a near-empty bar on the beach in Freeport, in the Bahamas. In 2012, I mimicked my family’s traditions in my studio apartment in South Korea. I cooked scalloped potatoes in the oven in my cooking classroom at work before coming home because the apartment had no oven. This time, 2014, I’m within the country but still over 4000 km away.
I’ve never been the most sentimental person, but something about the holidays seems to bring this up. I miss spending time with my family in my adult years. The thought of missing out on the fun, not being part of the memories, gets to me when the time rolls around.
The thing is, I’m an introvert. Not the cool, quirky kind, but the socially awkward and timid kind. Getting to know my extended family can be tough for me, though I do want to. Christmas is a happy time for my family, a time where I have always felt closer to them. Losing that makes me feel as though I am drifting away. Too deep, let’s haul it back.
So, this Christmas, I’ll make scalloped potatoes in my very own oven, and cross the distance via Skype. I’ll drink wine and cheers, while sitting awkwardly on a screen in front of a crowded room, watching and listening intently. It’s not family time without a little awkwardness, right?
How will your holidays be spent this year? Home or away, let me know!
(feature image by James Offer – with modifications)
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Interested in hearing more stories about Christmas away from home? Check out this post from Feet On Foreign Lands!
Thanks for sharing these thoughts. Your experience of Christmases away from your family definitely hits home for me. On the whole, young adulthood is a great time full of new experiences and lots of fun. But it’s also a time between families, when you’ve left home but don’t yet have a family, and traditions, of your own. Holidays especially can feel somewhat lonely without those comforts, can’t they?
So true. This time of year really makes me think about the time I choose to be away from my family. They understand, but there is still some level of guilt.
Spending Christmas away from home can’t definitely be easy. Sometimes life is that, choosing between going away and experiencing great adventures, but missing those ones back home. It is so hard to see your family away, and wanting to be by their side. My parents are form different countries, so I do never get to see my whole family on Christmas! Anyway, I hope you have a wonderful time and eat some awesome baked potatoes!
With love,
Vera
http://theflashwindow.weebly.com
Thanks Vera! Cooking the foods I would normally eat at home makes me feel comforted, and I think my parents feel good that the tradition is significant to me too!
I’m away from home for the very first Christmas this year! While I’m with my boyfriend and his family, I definitely understand how you can feel way more sentimental around this time. I heard one of my favourite Christmas songs the other day and completely took me back to Australian Christmases, and the sudden realisation that I wasn’t going to be home for it! I hope you have a fantastic Christmas regardless (and embrace the awkwardness, it’s so unavoidable)!! x
Awww I totally get it. I hope you enjoy the holidays in Denmark, I’m sure it’s amazing!
Hi Mary, your thoughts are truly precious and I believe they can mean a lot to certain kind of people (aka introverts) just like me! One of your last statements really resonate with me “The thing is, I’m an introvert. Not the cool, quirky kind, but the socially awkward and timid kind. Getting to know my extended family can be tough for me, though I do want to. Christmas is a happy time for my family, a time where I have always felt closer to them. Losing that makes me feel as though I am drifting away.” Thanks for sharing! xx
P.S.: Loving your blog design, it’s just lovely!
I’m so sorry I made a mistake in your name in my previous comment! xx
Haha, no worries. I’m used to getting either Mary or Maria. Thank you for your comments, I appreciate the kind words 🙂
I’ve been there too Marie, you’re definitely not alone! I never cared much for Christmas so I guess it was a little easier for me to let go of. In fact, I started to embrace ‘missing’ the traditional Christmas by traveling abroad during the holiday. I actually prefer to ‘skip’ Christmas these days but now I’m finding myself trying to create my own traditions since I have a son. I’d like him to grow up with great holiday memories. :o)
V
Life+1
It’s great to make those memories with your own family 🙂
I’m not a religious person in the least, but it makes it hard for me that most of my family is together and I’m the outsider. But I enjoy my quiet holidays!
Haha it’s not family time for me either without some awkwardness! Your Christmas plans sound pretty lovely though, and totally have me craving scalloped potatoes, haha.
Haha, glad to hear I’m not alone in that. I eat way too many potato dishes over the holidays. It’s fantastic.