Hi guys. I'm back. A little more about myself. Like I said, I've always been a fan of Xmas. Growing up it was always the best time of year for me. When summer ended, most of my favorite things started. Football, eating chili, hunting, Halloween, Thanksgiving and of course Xmas.
When I hit my late teens I, of course, got out of it a little but my 1st Xmas away from home while I was in the Army in 1991 was hard, the next one was even harder. I got out of the Army in 1993 but I lived in the Kansas City area at that time and due to the Big flood of 1993 jobs were difficult to find so I moved to Tennessee to my uncle's house and couldn't make it back home for ANOTHER Xmas.
Due to jobs and circumstances I missed a couple of other Xmas's with my family in my 20's. But I hit 30, found my wife and settled down and now I absolutely WILL NOT be away from my family on Xmas.
Last Spring I was diagnosed with kidney cancer and you all know what comes with that. I was suddenly faced with my own mortality. Being a Christian I wasn't particularly afraid of dying but being away from my son scared the hell out of me. He was only 2 at the time and the thought of me not raising him broke my heart.
But thankfully they got it in time, I had it removed in June and have been recovering since. And as you can guess last Xmas was just about as special as you can get. The fact that I was even there made it unforgettable.
I also have other physical problems but that's ok. I can't work but I stay at home and watch my 3 year old while the wife works. I hate hurting all the time but I do have to admit that being able to be around him everyday is nice.
So there you have it.