The Soapbox: Reflections and memories for the holiday season

A gift you forever cherish

My favorite Christmas? The year our first born arrived, just a few days before Christmas. I still remember the special joy of that holiday. What a precious gift.

- John Lampinen, Editor

Feliz Navidad

Last Christmas was like no other. My family came from Wisconsin, Thailand and Vietnam to assemble in San Jose del Cabo, Mexico, for a week. Swimming in the ocean sure didn't feel like Christmas then, but that togetherness - missing this year - is what I'll fondly remember as my favorite Christmas.

- Jim Baumann, Managing Editor

Rare time to reflect

Stripping away the mall crowds, the parties, the preparation for feasts leaves us with a less frenetic holiday, and perhaps the chance to reflect in quiet and count our blessings. Let peace envelop you and use the gift of time to connect in small ways with those who might feel forgotten.

­- Diane Dungey, Senior Deputy Managing Editor

A season to remember

Lighting the menorah on Zoom. Visiting Santa at a distance. Welcoming 2021 at home in your pajamas. These aren't the holidays we hoped for when 2020 rolled in, but we can all find joy in whatever traditions we preserve - and whatever adaptations we embrace. This will be a season to remember. Let's all do our best to make it special.

- Lisa Friedman Miner, Metro Editor

Extra lights this year

2020 was a passionate year in many ways, with strong views about politics and policies. But when the holidays started coming around, suburbanites were eager to celebrate. Outdoor orange lights appeared as soon as Oct. 1, and more displays followed over the weeks, proving how capable we are of bringing light and beauty into the world.

- Neil Holdway, Assistant Managing Editor/Copy Desk

Chaos and joy

Chrismukkah always is a wrapping paper-shredding frenzy for the six nieces and nephews on my husband's side of the family. Trying to get them all lined up for a photo? Yeah, like herding cats. And we love it. The gift reveals likely will occur over Zoom (and be considerably more subdued) this year, but the 2021 celebration figures to be a return to raucousness.

- Michelle Holdway, News Editor

Health and happiness

If there ever were a year to cherish good health and hold tight to the people who make you happy in life, it is 2020. So, as this difficult year comes to a close, make a point to be well, stay safe and take joy in the time you spend with family and friends - even if has to be in a Zoom call.

- Pete Nenni, Deputy Managing Editor

Unlike any other year

As I prepare for Christmas 2020, void of holiday basketball tournaments, I reflect on Christmases past where I would have to hurry through the family dinner and gift exchange to get home and prepare for tournament madness. This year, provided we decide to have a smaller than small gathering, I'm going to stay longer and enjoy being with family.

- John Radtke, High School Sports Editor

I won't forget this one

A family friend made me one of those foot-tall ceramic Christmas trees with a bunch of lights about 35 years ago, because I did a favor for her. We unwrapped it a week ago and it was cracked at the base to the point no glue gun could repair it. While that pretty much fits in with the overall tenor of 2020, the tree lives on in my memories, and those are never going away.

- Mike Smith, Sports Editor

Speaking of not forgetting

I will always remember 2020 for the quality time I got to spend with my wife, daughter and two sons. Having everyone at home all the time - and dealing with remote learning - wasn't easy. But it was worth it.

- Robert Sanchez, Deputy City Editor

Keeping a tradition alive

My most cherished childhood Christmas ornament was made for me in the early 60s by our next-door neighbor - a delicate eggshell, painted and decorated with lace, with an opening cut to admit the little nativity scene nestled inside. It has followed me everywhere I've called home, and now I'm back living in the old homestead. To me, this is a neighborhood, not a family, heirloom, and next year it will go to the 10-year-old growing up on the other side of us, so that each Christmas, Lucille will be appreciated by a new generation on our street.

- Renee Trappe, SILMG group editor

Creating a new tradition

Since the Ronald McDonald House in Winfield opened in 2015, our family has made it an annual tradition to cook dinner on Christmas Eve for the families staying there over the holidays. It's been one of the highlights of the season for us. While we won't get to do that this year, instead, my daughter is making fleece blankets and snack packages that we will deliver to Ronald McDonald House before Christmas. We hope it brings a little bit of comfort and hope during this difficult time.

- Caroline Linden, News Editor

Christmas in quarantine

We'll feel a special kind of loneliness this Christmas when our children can't visit us nor can we visit our own parents and distant family. But wherever we all are, love will be in the air - if only because we can't be together in person. And we'll find ways to share the blessings of the season, knowing that if nothing else, this year's sacrifice will help us value them all the more in the future.

- Jim Slusher, Deputy Managing Editor for Opinion