Christmas time is often a favorite of my friends. For me, it is always a different type of enjoyment.

I often find myself listening to people talk about their Christmas traditions and asking me about mine. My go-to answer is “I don’t celebrate Christmas”. People are always very quiet after they here this. Next, I tell them, “But I participate in Christmas”. This usually leads to some confusion. Let me try to explain.

According to dictionary.com, celebrating is to observe or commemorate with ceremonies and festivities and participating is to take part or share with others.

I share Christmas with others. I take part. I participate. The main difference is that I do not observe the holiday in the traditional sense.

I do not go to church on Christmas. You won’t see a tree or Christmas decorations up at my house. But I still spend Christmas with my family. We have meals together and sometimes exchange gifts.

When I am with my friends, I do more participating. I go to Christmas parties. I’ll wear a Santa hat. I'll help them set up and decorate their Christmas tree. We can exchange gifts. You can wish me a Merry Christmas.

You probably won’t see me hosting a Christmas party or doing extensive Christmas shopping. But even I enjoy the Christmas season. There is something special about the winter season and everything closing so that families can be together.

There is no protocol you have to follow when you are around me during the holidays. I participate and just like you, I enjoy spending the holiday with the people I care about.

Just because I do not go to church and celebrate the birth of Jesus, does not mean that I ignore the holiday or withdraw myself from it completely.

Christmas is an important holiday for many people and I enjoy learning about it. My friends always make me feel welcomed to learn about their Christmas traditions.

I still enjoy eating candy canes, buying my friends gifts, and seeing the beautiful Christmas lights around town.

With all this being said, I hope you have a better understanding of what Christmas time is like for me.

I hope you have a Merry Christmas!