Here's Amy's second writing prompt for Christmas. (Now if I could just keep up with Shimelle's Journal My Christmas prompts as easily.)
Writing Prompt: When you think of your childhood Christmases, what is the most vivid memory you have?
I found my immediate response to this prompt somewhat surprising as I really hadn’t thought about Christmas at my Aunt Alys’ in years. But those after-Christmas celebrations are among my most vivid Christmas memories. My mother had two brothers and a sister who lived in Toledo, Ohio near my grandparents. After celebrating Christmas at home south of Columbus, we drove to my grandparents and had a second Christmas at my aunt’s. There were thirteen cousins and it was always a noisy event, but to me, one that was truly celebratory. Christmas at our house was a rather quiet event, and this was a huge contrast. In addition, my aunt had an elaborately decorated house with two Christmas trees. One (green) was decorated totally in blue ornaments and sat in the living room. The other (white) was covered in gold ornaments. It was a Martha Stewart house well before Martha’s day. The icing on the cake was the consignment shop my aunt ran from a downstairs room. We (the girls) could go in and try on clothes, shoes, jewelry, furs. . . it added to the aura of elegance. In reality, my mother’s family was not the elegant sort, but that’s how I remember Christmas at Aunt Alys’.
