letters, we get letters

I love the dreaded Christmas letters

     Really, I do.  I think it's the romantic in me.
     I love reading about kids, and grand kids and dogs and highlights of the family's life.  I don't like reading about sickness.  I remember when I was younger, a  relative would mail us a letter and it would be a litany of things that have gone wrong with their bodies.
     Or, exactly how my letters now sound.
     I've been doing a letter for several years.  Julia was still in Illinois when I did the first one, although she may have been on her way to the land of the Swiss.
     (Incidentally, Switzerland and Sweden are not the same.  Yes, both are in Europe and both start with an S....but they are not the same.  And Swaziland is not another name for Switzerland, it is a separate nation in Africa.  Toto taught me that.)
     My first letter was a little weird.  A friend of ours in Maryland got our card and immediately put the letter on the table.  His daughter picked it up and started reading, and was laughing hysterically and David could not understand why.
     After he read it, he called and we talked for quite a while.  He explained that he got the card and put the letter on a table, where it sat for several days.  He doesn't read Christmas letters.  But then his daughter found it and ...... well, that's about it.  He hasn't called since.
     Sometimes other people let me know they enjoy the letters.  One side is serious, and the other side is not.  People have the option of reading one side, both sides, or putting it on the table.
     And no, I don't send them to everyone.  Usually family always gets one, although we never get cards from my side of the family.  So I don't know if they get the $100 gift cards I send them all each year.  Just kidding.  I assume they get the cards, but there are no gifts.
     I remember the first letter I did;  Jordan was still playing for the Bulls.  Jackie may have just been diagnosed with MS, which puts it about 1998 or so.  My mind is fuzzy on dates.
     Anyway, I wish I had a copy of the letters I have sent.  Sadly, I did not think to keep a printed copy and we have changed computers during that time, so the early letters are lost.
     Someday, when I am famous, a tech guy will find them on my old computer and publish them.  I'll probably win a No Bell Prize for humor in a Christmas card.  I just hope I am around to accept the award.
     I just realized today I am closer to 68 than I am 67.  Julia has been in Switzerland for 13 years, 14 in March.  Emily has been a pharmacist for over 15.
     Time sure does fly when you are having fun.
     I just wish there was a way to slow it down a little so I could enjoy the ride.