When I was a kid we did the usual and almost cliche stuff for Halloween, Thanksgiving and New Year's, but Christmas was a whole other animal. My family has a strange way of gravitating toward professions where holidays are not guaranteed days off, and in some cases, will absolutely mean you'll be working--police, military, firefighters, a couple of doctors, EMT's, wrecker drivers, linemen, etc. Since most of the family worked on Christmas Eve, and came in at different times, our Christmas Eve dinner was a huge pot of chili and a big pan of cornbread. Everyone served themselves as they got home. Late Christmas Eve we all opened our gifts. Some went to work on the graveyard shift after that.

Us kids got our gifts from Santa early the next morning. Christmas dinner was more or less the usual, except we ate it as an early dinner at around 11AM. Then plates were made and put in tupperware and taken to the ones at work, as well as to their co-workers.

Years later, after spending some time in the Florida panhandle and going to New Orleans on a regular basis, I came upon several really good recipes for gumbo, which took the place of chili in my house. I kept the tradition, though it was unnecessary.

Nowadays we have a "new tradition." On Christmas Eve I fire up the smoker at about 5AM and we invite family and friends over for ribs and brisket, collard greens, sprouts, etc. After we eat we take the leftovers to the nurses at the old-folks home down the street and to the guys at the Sheriff's Office. It's very similar to what we used to do, but since most of my family has passed away over the last 25 years and my own generation is scattered about the country, I decided to keep doing it but extend it to people outside the family, and especially to those who give up their family time and possibly put themselves in harm's way while the rest of us have a good time.

I guess I should catch some sleep. I have wood to chop and have to start a fire in less than six hours!