We all finished the evening gathered
around a piano singing carols.
The next day was Christmas Eve,
and all of the grandkids had spent the
day outside making snowmen and
sledding, coming in and out, drinking
hot chocolate and eating the last of
the cookies. The adults had spent
the day fine-tuning the tree, putting
packages out to share, and making
soup that sent an aroma
throughout the house
that had my stomach
growling. I know that
our kids had spent a
lot of time talking and
planning out a menu
using what we had on-
hand, and if aroma was
an indicator, we were in
for something delicious.
My son had found
a couple of movies
near the entertainment
center that seemed so
appropriate, Lake Effects
and What About Bob,
both filmed at Smith
Mountain Lake. I
couldn’t believe our good
luck. I had also tucked
It’s a Wonderful Life into
my suitcase to watch just
before we went to bed.
The
snow
had
accumulated to about
a foot, which we
understood was very rare for this part
of Virginia. On Christmas morning,
everything was still covered and the
lake could not have been bluer. The
trees that surrounded us stood out in
the bright sunshine that came across
the lake as it rose in the East. As I
stood at our window looking out at
all this unbelievable beauty, it struck
me again that I had not seen a cell
phone, a computer, or a video game
in several days. This had to be some
kind of record.
Roz was in the kitchen fixing a
breakfast casserole and I had said I
would make biscuits. By the time
we had gotten everything to the
table, everyone had come out of their
bedrooms and were gathering around
the tree checking out the packages. I
called everyone to the table and said
we should eat before opening gifts
which brought a few moans from the
grandchildren, but they settled down
and ate without making too much
fuss.
I thought this might be a good
time to ask the kids what they thought
of our Christmas this year. Without
hesitation, the grandchildren began
to speak over each other and all
agreed that the snow and the new
friends they had made had to be
the best part. Our grown children
said this had been one of the most
relaxing, enjoyable Christmases they
had ever had, and that was due totally
to the fact we had all been engaged
with each other and our
surroundings.
Smith
Mountain
Lake is a manmade
wonder. Our family
has vacationed in many
beautiful places around
the world, but none any
prettier or as perfect as
this area of the country.
We have been very
fortunate to be able to
spend time at Smith
Mountain over the years,
but I have to say, our
Christmas there with our
entire family will have to
go down as one of the
most beautiful, enjoyable
holidays we have ever
spent. In fact, Roz and
I decided to make Smith
Mountain Lake our
Christmas destination
in the coming years with
an open invitation to
our children to join us.
We know they won’t all be able to
join us every Christmas, but just the
thought of being able to come back
to this little corner of the world next
December was something Roz and
I could talk about and plan for the
whole year.
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Christmas Continued...
Discover Smith Mountain Lake
Winter 2014
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