Christmas: family

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 My family is not the most close knit household you’d find. Everyone is busy, spending only nights-or weekends-at home. Even birthdays are often let pass. It's been long since I regretted their uneventfulness: finding a raspberry cheesecake in the refrigerator late at night is my definition of a good birthday. Emotionally charged words are also a scarcity. While we care for one another, we are not an expressive lot (my literary hero is Hemingway's Jake Barnes). Which is just fine for me. By the Kim Dictionary, a plain "Happy Birthday" translates into "We love you."

 But Christmas is the exception. As the holiday approaches, our family declares martial law. Decorations, frosted cookies, gentle carols, all the good old stuff. My family is a pretty individual lot, and we aren't very explicit with our feelings. But drier wood burns brighter in fire. It’s like Clausius’s law of entropy. The same amount in heat released causes more impact when the initial temperature is lower. The colder you were, the warmer you’ll feel near the same fire.

 Anyways, Christmas is the big event of our family. It's the reminder of my childhood, when we spent more time together. Each year as I hunt for presents, I realize how much there is to learn about my mom, dad, sister, brother, and pet rabbit. Secretly placing carefully wrapped presents under the tree, I let out a small "Ho-ho-ho". It's not too bad that Santa Claus exists doesn't exist, I guess.




// The high-tech, individualized 21st century's homo sapiens are often too busy on their phones to talk to each other, even with their families. My diagnosis: more Christmas spirit.

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