Edith Page Tasker
I want to take the time to talk about my Grammy. She was very sick for the past few months and passed away this morning at 2:00am. Her & my Grandpa’s 59th wedding anniversary was quickly approaching and it would have been the last day of December. I wonder if she was trying to hold on long enough to wait for that day.
We used to have “Chinese Christmas” every New Years Day as a way to gather and celebrate their wedding anniversary and the holidays together. We would all meet up at the same Chinese restaurant (which was called Aloha) and would sit at a long table. Our party was anywhere from 20-30 people. We would eat poo poo platters and enjoy the company of our grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins all in one place. The restaurant staff knew us and expected our large party the same time every year. The manager even knew my Grandfather and called him by his first name.
This is one of those holiday celebrations you remember from childhood where all the years that you did this tradition turns into one happy holiday blur. Everything was pretty much the same every year: I would always sit across the table from my best friend and favorite cousin, Carrie. We would talk about what we got for Christmas presents. We would play with our food when the meal was over and make crazy concoctions out of the tea, mushrooms and spicy mustard. Sometimes our boyfriends came and sometimes it was just us.
As with most traditions, as the kids and cousins got older and the aunts and uncles moved farther away, the attendance started to thin out. However, for those of you who used to be a part of this Chinese Christmas tradition, you know what I mean when I say that it is something we will never forget.
When I think about my Grammy, I smile at the way she makes me feel inside. I thank her for all the memories she has given me.
