I talk about growing up a lot. I'm fascinated in maturing and figuring out the real world, but one part of growing up always hurts a little bit, and that's the lessening of the magic of Christmas.

What happened? It seems that only a couple years ago I couldn't fall asleep on Christmas Eve night, the excitement and the joy kept me from shutting my eyes. This Christmas Eve, I fell asleep almost as soon as my head hit the pillow. In the past, my Christmas was full of activity and many different things had to be done to prepare; decorating, running errands, doing chores, wrapping gifts, and much more. All of those things were so much fun and energetic. Now, I just did my shopping online, I wrapped them up and that was that. On Christmas Eve, I worked for five hours at my part-time job, went home, went to church with my family, and fell asleep upon getting home. Not as exciting as past years. Is this whole 'growing up' thing taking the magic out of Christmas?

This post isn't really about how to fix Christmas from becoming not exciting or a big explanation as to why the holidays are seemingly more and more mundane, it's simply just a post on what I feel is happening and hopefully, others will relate. I'm here to raise awareness of Christmas becoming less magical! But then again, no one can really stop the process of growing up and facing everything that comes with adulthood, including holidays, becoming more work and less play.

So what am I going to do? There's nothing I can do now to necessarily stop the fact that the magic isn't going to feel the same way it has in the past. Adulthood and maturity don't slow down. I've just assumed a new role when it comes to the magic that is, Christmas. I'm no longer a direct receiver of the magic, I'm a creator. I'll take a more prominent stand in making sure the holidays are enjoyable and magical for other loved ones around me instead of hoping that everything goes my way and that I'm the one who's having a good time. When I have children of my own, I will make sure they feel the exact same way as when I did as a kid. I want to see their faces light up just like mine did while we decorate our home, cook up some delicious food, and wrap presents. Just because I'm oder doesn't mean Christmas has to stop, it just means that they are seen from a different angle, an older angle.

Christmas isn't lost once someone hits a certain age. It just changes, little by little, so that the magic that we knew as kids keeps getting passed down to the younger generations. It's a cycle really, that goes hand in hand with age and maturity.