Last night I sat down to address Christmas Cards.  I’ll mail them tomorrow.

I know, not everyone sends out Christmas Cards any more.  It’s a lost art.  Buying cards, keeping a Christmas Card list, sitting down and writing Merry Christmas from Mike and Sue, that sort of stuff.

People say they’re too busy and it costs too much money.

Bah Humbug!

Me, I plan to mail out Christmas Cards as long as I can.  I want my friends and neighbors to know I’m still kicking dirt and sand in my neighborhood. I’ll use the money from my last social security check if need be!

I want to wish you a very Merry Christmas.

When I was a kid,  Santa Claus was real. I still had faith in the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy.  I remember  we got a hundred Christmas Cards every Christmas.  We didn’t have a fireplace with a mantle.  We had a coffee table in front of the sofa and an end table by the TV.  Christmas cards covered every square inch, between the lamp and the latest copy of TV Guide.

We exchanged Christmas Cards with everyone in the family.  We got cards from  Aunts and Uncles, my Grandmother, who lived 28 miles away.  some great Aunts, those who outlived their husbands, they sent Christmas cards anyway. We received several from Louisiana, where my father grew up.  My Mom received cards from some of her old high school friends and the women in her bowling league.

My Dad received cards from the roughnecks and drillers he worked with.  The local businesses where he bough supplies always sent him a Christmas card.

My Mom sat at the kitchen table for an entire afternoon, hand writing addresses on the front, return addresses on the left, upper corner.  I got to stick the Christmas Seal on the back.  We had to lick every envelope flap and every stamp. I could taste the glue for a week.

My Mom kept a list and checked off every name.  If you sent her a card, then, by Golly, you were going to get one in the return mail.

Outloud she asked why Mr and Mrs. So and So failed to mail a card this year.  Of course, they had exchanged cards for years. What happened?

I was six years old, I didn’t have a clue.

Back then, people spent more money on Christmas cards and envelopes than stamps.  They sent beautiful cards with gorgeous artwork.  Always a Santa Claus or a religious scene.  Never a Happy Holiday.  Every card said Merry Christmas.

The envelopes were red or green, hardly ever a plain white envelope.  She sent me to the post office to get special Christmas stamps, the ones with Baby Jesus, the Manger, the Star of Bethlehem.

My Mom would go from one store to another, choosing the perfect card for this year’s mailing.  Some close friends got special cards.

Things change.

Please feel free to share.  I welcome your comments and thoughts.  Contact Mike Windham at [email protected].  You can follow my blog at mikewindham.com.