Nothing, Infinity and You

In December 1976 (I forget which day exactly), my parents and their five children (I’m number two) were crammed in a hotel room with two double beds. We had just returned to mainland USA from a [near] five year stint in Puerto Rico. We left New York City when I was seven years old, and returned when I was eleven.

We celebrated Christmas in this hotel (it was a Holiday Inn in Hialeah, Florida). We must have stayed there a week or two. It was a bit of a blur. During that time, we watched countless Christmas Specials, opened presents (I got a Pong game console, the size of my current PS5), and ate at restaurants/take out. This was my first time eating at IHOP.

I like IHOP.

Christmas was always a time to look forward to.

One evening, “A Charlie Brown Christmas” came on the telly. It already had an eleven year run, by this time (since December 9, 1965; (I looked it up 🙂 )), but this was my first time watching it (remind me to tell you about my first time watching the animated version of “The Hobbit”). We all know the story: Charlie Brown depressed by the commercialization of Christmas, but by the end of the movie, his faith is restored.

I remember feeling his depression. I sympathized with him. It gave me pause, and at that time, I became aware of what Mr. Brown was referring to.

But the evening wasn’t over.

Reruns of “Happy Days” were playing, and on this particular evening, the episode “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner”, we find a prideful Fonzie, alone in his garage, heating up a can of what seems like Chef Boy R Dee’s ravioli (one of my favorites), while fixing a small, tabletop, artificial Christmas tree. It was a poignant scene, one that made me feel sorry for him. It also made me realize, for the first time, that there are people not able to celebrate Christmas as depicted in Hallmark movies, or Dolly Parton Christmas Specials (remember those?).

These two programs had a profound impact on me. One that would affect me for many years, and at one point, creating discord with my own family. I’ve reconciled my emotions and my thoughts, since then, and I’m at peace with these realities, and though there’s no solution for them, I can look forward to Christmas, and do my part in it, which is all I can control.

Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown!