Oh Cookie!
It's that time of year again where I need to make an obnoxious amount of cookies to feast upon. I have been thoughtfully planning my list of Christmas cookies. Although in my head it seems like there should be some sort of major plan in actuality there is not. As it should be. We make what we love.
I know that Christmas cookies are a big deal in this house. They have been a significant aspect of Christmas for over 13 years. (I'm not counting our pre-married memories here) Which as it should be. Christmas cookies are tidbits of tradition. The pieces of memory we patch together for the celebration of Christmas. As I think about how fantastic is was to see those delightful linzer cookies presented beautifull on my Grandmother's Christmas Eve table I totally understand why we grasp onto these palate pleasing luxuries. Cookies at Christmas take us back to those wonderful moments of childhood memory.
One bite and we are instantly transported through space and time to that moment. That moment when we stuffed that delicious cookie into our mouths and felt so loved, so perfect. Maybe it was the timing, maybe it was the flavor, maybe it was we were so darn hungry and we knew sneaking a cookie was forbidden....either way it was memorable. So memorable that as adults we demand that our spouses include OUR cookies into the Christmas mix.
As it goes I am confronted with an outreageous list of cookies to bake. Yes. I know. Every year I pause and think to myself 'Is this reasonable? Is this practical? Can it be done?' And every single year I make it happen. I do it because I know that deep down it just is not Christmas if we don't get to enjoy those wonderful pieces of childhood every year. What it is is tradition. We pass on the tradition of our family. The flavors of our seasons as they pass through the year. For us it means having countless varietes of cookies to enjoy on Christmas day.
While I may think to myself that I cannot do so much baking in such little time; I will remind myself that it is not about me and my busy days. Oh no. It is not. It is about my family. It is about tradition. What can I pass on to my children about the wonders of Christmas beyond the Bible? How does the season make you feel? I can only think of Christmas when being on the cusp of 40 years old when I bite into Great-Grandma's cookie I feel like am 7 years old again. Now that, that is a gift worth giving. I am determined to continue that gift for as long as my hands are capable.
I know that Christmas cookies are a big deal in this house. They have been a significant aspect of Christmas for over 13 years. (I'm not counting our pre-married memories here) Which as it should be. Christmas cookies are tidbits of tradition. The pieces of memory we patch together for the celebration of Christmas. As I think about how fantastic is was to see those delightful linzer cookies presented beautifull on my Grandmother's Christmas Eve table I totally understand why we grasp onto these palate pleasing luxuries. Cookies at Christmas take us back to those wonderful moments of childhood memory.
One bite and we are instantly transported through space and time to that moment. That moment when we stuffed that delicious cookie into our mouths and felt so loved, so perfect. Maybe it was the timing, maybe it was the flavor, maybe it was we were so darn hungry and we knew sneaking a cookie was forbidden....either way it was memorable. So memorable that as adults we demand that our spouses include OUR cookies into the Christmas mix.
As it goes I am confronted with an outreageous list of cookies to bake. Yes. I know. Every year I pause and think to myself 'Is this reasonable? Is this practical? Can it be done?' And every single year I make it happen. I do it because I know that deep down it just is not Christmas if we don't get to enjoy those wonderful pieces of childhood every year. What it is is tradition. We pass on the tradition of our family. The flavors of our seasons as they pass through the year. For us it means having countless varietes of cookies to enjoy on Christmas day.
While I may think to myself that I cannot do so much baking in such little time; I will remind myself that it is not about me and my busy days. Oh no. It is not. It is about my family. It is about tradition. What can I pass on to my children about the wonders of Christmas beyond the Bible? How does the season make you feel? I can only think of Christmas when being on the cusp of 40 years old when I bite into Great-Grandma's cookie I feel like am 7 years old again. Now that, that is a gift worth giving. I am determined to continue that gift for as long as my hands are capable.
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