Christmas specials are my favorite thing about Christmas. Cheesy movies, classic movies, animated shows - you name it, I'll watch it. I wait all year for all of my favorites to be shown on television. In fact, I still get that giddy, little kid feeling when I see the commercials for Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. (And to all of my boocklub friends out there, I briefly considered staying home last week to watch it...even though I own it!) It's my all time favorite, and I guess because when I was a little kid, you only got one chance a year to watch it. That was it, if you missed it, you had to wait an entire year just to see Rudolph learning to fly after Clarice tells him he's cute. These specials hold so much nostalgia for me, and when I watch them, I can just feel the Christmas spirit.
My mother always made a big deal out of the specials, too. Which is probably another reason why I get that warm, cozy feeling when I watch them. We were allowed to turn all of the lights off and just watch them with the glow of the twinkle lights in our beautifully decorated house. I mean, that's what Christmas was all about, Charlie Brown.
Anyway, last night, Noah and I were out, and when I was getting him out of the car, I said "Let's hurry, because Charlie Brown Christmas is on tonight!" (I think I might have even let out a "SQUEEEEEEE!") I was that excited to watch my second favorite Christmas special with my own child. Quickly, Noah burst that bubble. He looked at me funny, and said "Well, Mommy, we HAVE that movie!"
At that moment, I realized that these specials that have been around longer than I have, that I grew up waiting for with bated breath each year, will never, ever mean to Noah what they mean to me. Why would it? He can watch it 100 times in the month of December if he wants to. Or, if he's really feeling like he needs to see Charlie Brown's sad little tree turn in to the best Christmas tree ever in the middle of the summer, he can watch it in July.
On one hand, I think it's great for him...he can watch it whenever he wants. It's technology at his fingertips. On the other, I feel a little sad for him. That he'll never know the true anticipation of seeing a favorite show only once a year. I guess for one time a year, the tables will be turned - I'll be the one who gets excited when I see a commercial for Rudolph or Frosty or the Heat Miser specials, and Noah will remind me that it's no big deal at all.
3 comments:
awww, it's so true! It was all about the anticipation growing up.
I feel the same way about cartoons. There used to be so much anticipation about watching cartoons for only 6 hours on Saturday and you would get so excited about it. Now, the thrill is gone...
I know what you mean. I also kinda considered skipping for Rudolph, but book club won out.
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