A Christmas surprise

Holiday traditions in our family have been followed for decades — eggnog and my mother’s famous lemon squares, pound cake or cookies set out for Santa; the reading of “Twas the Night Before Christmas” from a book bought in the 1950s for 5 cents and the Cajun version added after living in New Orleans; stockings with coins wrapped in waxed paper in the toe of my daddy’s socks when I was little, and now gold brocade stockings that contain gift cards; huge Christmas breakfasts with the once-a-year treat of “pull apart” cinnamon rolls; to an equally huge Christmas dinner with the Robinson family’s secret sweet potato pie recipe that my daughter, Liza, now makes.

Having my first child at 40 returned the joy children bring. My son, Mick, received so many toys one year that we established another tradition of sharing new toys with children at St. Joseph’s Villa and setting a toy limit on grandparents and Auntie.

However, Christmas 1996 is the most memorable. That year began on the saddest note with the passing of my mother in February and my father in October. Somehow, we were trying to keep the joy alive in spite of the huge hole in our hearts.

That morning, I struggled to get breakfast prepared and forced a smile as 5-year-old Mick declared that he was the “luckiest boy in the world” because Santa had brought both Buzz Lightyear and the batteries to make him work! My sister said that I had to pep up because, after all, she too had lost our parents but was staying positive.

What she didn’t know was that I wasn’t moving slowly because of grief. After the last toy had been opened, I slipped upstairs and took a home pregnancy test. Much to my surprise and joy, it was positive! God had blessed us: Our second miracle, Liza, was on the way.

Ms. Norrell, a retired teacher-librarian with Richmond Public Schools, is office manager and greeter at the Black History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia.

Blessed Christmas honor

Christmas has always had a very special place in my heart.

As a child, growing up in RVA, my family always celebrated the holiday traditions with all the trimmings, literally. We were all so excited to decorate a live Christmas tree, with the smell of pine filling the house.

Christmas morning was magical for us kids, with the toys and other gifts, as well as the stocking stuffers.

Food was an important part of the celebration, with a special breakfast and a dinner with, again, all the trimmings.

When we are young, we are exposed to, and influenced by, the commercial side of Christmas. We visit with Santa, do a lot of shopping and pick out what we want for Christmas.

As I got older, I started to become more in touch with the spiritual side and was reminded of why we celebrate Christmas in the first place. It is the birth of our Savior, the Christ.

I was raised Catholic, and when I reached middle school age, I became an altar boy. I was so honored to process into the sanctuary of the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart and serve in the celebration of Mass. Each year culminated with a celebration of Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve.

The altar boys were assigned specific roles for the High Mass. I have fond memories of being chosen to serve as the thurifer. The thurifer carries a censer, which is the vessel used to burn incense. The thurifer also leads the procession, followed by the cross bearer and two acolytes. I felt so humbled, yet empowered at the same time. This experience cast me in a leadership role for the first time in my life.

After having served as music director and conductor of the Petersburg Symphony Orchestra for the past 30 years, I feel that my experience as an altar boy has shaped and inspired my role as a leader, like a good shepherd keeping watch over his flock.

Blessings to all!

Mr. Kirksey is music director and conductor of the Petersburg Symphony Orchestra.

Santa tricks

Growing up, my parents would go to great lengths to preserve my unwavering belief in the big man himself — Santa.

There is something sincerely innocent and precious about a child’s belief in the magic of Christmas, and I think my parents took it as a competitive challenge amongst themselves to see how long they could push it.

One year, they flashed red and green lights from the backyard. I recall seeing the lights bouncing back and forth on my cinderblock walls, half scared to death that Santa was actually outside and half thrilled that presents were on their way.

Another year, my parents meticulously planted glitter after a snowfall and convinced me that the reindeer had left it behind after taking off.

Eventually, I caught on, but I was probably a believer longer than most of my peers.

I didn’t want to bust my parents’ bubble, so for a couple of subsequent years, I played right along with them.

I will always cherish and appreciate the effort they put into their homemade Christmas tricks that made the season that much more magical and special.

Ms. Lynch represents the 5th District on Richmond City Council.

Christmas Eve with Granny, family

My most cherished holiday memory is spending Christmas Eve at my Granny’s house, the matriarch of our family, in Hopewell.

The family house is located on a street that my grandparents, great-uncles and aunts and cousins all grew up on.

On Christmas Eve, it was a tradition for my Granny to host a dinner for her children’s family, and next door, my great-aunt and uncle hosted a dinner for their children’s family. The best part about the proximity is that we would trot from house to house in the crisp winter air to enjoy the warm fellowship taking place in both. The spaces were filled with three generations, the smell of home-cooked food that took days of preparation and the sounds of laughter, along with holiday music and movies that played.

As the head of the family, my Granny would bless the food, giving thanks to God and, of course, blessing the hands that prepared it, which happened to be her very own hands. I distinctly remember feeling complete joy and abundance from the expression of her love language — the act of feeding and quality time.

After eating, we would gather around the Christmas tree and extravagantly decorated living room to exchange gifts. My Granny always had a gift for each of her eight grandkids — a set of pajamas.

As time passes and our family expands, our Christmas Eve tradition has shifted to each family spending it in various locations. The fond memory of time spent together stays in my heart and reminds me to cherish the memory, and furthermore, to be intentional about spending time with loved ones during the holiday season and beyond.

Ms. Williams is the owner of Bare SOUL Yoga in Richmond.