Memories of Christmas

December 23rd, 2010 is a day burned in my memory. My grandmother Carrie Bell passed away in her sleep. Two days from Christmas. This holiday will never be the same. She is no longer suffering and is in peace. As the Christmas 2011 year creeps closer, my heart feels heavy with sadness.

Christmas is a holiday full of joy and love. This holiday season for my family and I will not only be full of love and joy but a heavy heart of sadness. i can't believe it has been a year since she has been gone. It seems as if it was yesterday.

This memory is a memory I will dream of Christmas every year. She was a wonderful woman, who was full of love and life. She touched and inspired those who knew her. Memories of her will be in my heart and mind on Christmas.

The best Christmas memory I have is the last Christmas I had with my grandmother. It became a tradition to buy one gift and to draw numbers for the gifts in attendance. The purpose of the game is each person draws a number, and then the person with number one chooses a gift and keeps it. The person with the number two can either choose the gift of the person with number one or choose another gift from the pile.

This game goes on until the last number picks their gift. It is a very fun game to try and becomes a great gift giving tradition. This particular year, my grandmother ended up with the gift of jumper cables. My grandmother didn't know how to drive and had no vehicle. Her expression was classic. I don't remember exactly what she finally ended up with.

I can still remember her laugh and her smile as if it was yesterday. She was a remarkable woman. These Christmas memories are some of my most cherished memories. Christmas will never be the same without her here with us.