LOCKER-ROOM BLOG

Burris: The Joy of Christmas

December 15, 2009

I feel I have a greater appreciation and enjoyment of Christmas now that I have a family and we’ve settled in Calgary year-round.

Christmas in Oklahoma is a much different Christmas because the traditions we have there are much different than the traditions we have adopted here in Calgary. First of all, we know in Oklahoma there’s not going to be any snow, so there aren’t going to be any sleighs. We sing Christmas carols but for the most part, just like Thanksgiving, Christmas is a day of football, family and food.

Here in Calgary, you get more of a Christmas feeling. All the Christmas carols you used to sing were about things like having a White Christmas. Well, when it’s Christmas and it’s 80-something degrees, it’s Christmas but it’s really not. In Calgary, you get the true feeling of Christmas when the snow is falling, you’re seeing the lights and you’re seeing the many things that come with Christmas here. That’s probably the biggest difference for me but even more than that it’s the fact we’re parents now and at this time of the year, you start to see the kids get excited about what they’re going to get.

But the No. 1 thing above it all is counting your blessings and being thankful for what the holiday is all about and celebrating the birth of Christ. We’re trying to spread the joy and the reason why we’re celebrating this beautiful holiday.

We still have two young kids so they don’t truly understand the meaning of Christmas yet, but the joy and the love that is being shared and the fact that we are thankful for our two blessings when we look at Armand and Barron. The fact that Nicole and I are parents now, I realize now that it’s all about ensuring that the kids enjoy Christmas. For them, it’s a different meaning than it is for us. They want to see what Santa left, whereas for me it’s about waking up that morning and seeing the joy that’s in their eyes and it makes us grateful for the blessings we have received.

Because of those blessings, you realize all the more how important it is to spread the joy during this season.

I know from spending my time in Philadelphia when I was a Temple and seeing all the people who grew up in the hoods of Philadelphia. When you drive down certain streets, you wonder if there really is the joy of Christmas. Maybe there is but you don’t see the spirit like you do in Calgary. That’s why I’m truly thankful to be in a city like Calgary and that’s why I never want to leave.

The Calgary Food Bank is something that’s so important all year-round but more notably at this time because you want each and every body to experience the joy of Christmas because the blessing of what the season is all about will affect us forever. That celebration is truly special and it’s something that was meant for everybody. Christmas has no boundaries. Christmas has no borders. It’s for everybody. When you look at the meaning of what Christmas is truly about — it’s about love.

With the Calgary Herald Christmas Fund, you can be sure your donations are going directly to assist the 14 charities chosen in their multiple projects to help people of all ages in our city. As the city of Calgary grows, and particularly at Christmastime, we all need to reach out as much as we can to help others in their time of need.

Henry Burris, #1

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