Hi, my name is Safiyyah Talley and I am obsessed with all things Christmas. It's a healthy obsession though! (I think). I was not allowed to celebrate Christmas as kid. My parents were and still are devout Muslims and is part of a sect that because popular around the time of the Nation of Islam, so I had a very strict, anti-Christmas upbringing. As a result, I absolutely, positively, fell in love with Christmas from a far. I remember dreading Christmas day, as all I had to do was watch Christmas specials and pray while my cousins got to exchange gifts with Grandma and Grandpa. As I got older, I didn't even care about the presents. I just wanted to go and have fun with my family and experience the love and joy of the holidays. On one particular Christmas, my parents read a speech about why Christmas was bad. So yes, I never had a good Christmas until I was in my late teens and had one foot out of the door.
I am an adult now, and can make my own choices, and I choose to capture joy in every day. Every day is meant to be lived to the fullest as our time on this earth is short. And so I celebrate Christmas with my in-laws, and of course, my 2-year old Beau. He already loves it.
We put up the tree a couple of weeks ago, and he had his hand in all of the merrymaking. He particularly liked picking out ornaments to put on the tree. I actually keep my tree lit during the day for extra Christmas magic (we turn it off over-night to ward off mischievous wire-biting cats), and I love seeing his little face split into a smile as the lights reflect off of the sparkly ornaments. To top our tree this year, I searched high and low for a traditional angel. Possibly because I long for the traditional, nostalgic Christmas that I really wanted as a child. And, it was important that this angel was black. It was so hard to find a black angel on Dec 1st. Admittedly, I'm still new to Christmas so I am still trying to grasp the concept of everything being sold out super fast. I finally found a black angel at Michaels, and she is absolutely lovely, with her gold wings and her delicate hands holding onto two lit candles. Just magical.
The child in me is smiling, and so is my own child. And that is all I want this Christmas: Smiles. As for my parents, they came around and since having Beau, they have been sending us Christmas gifts every year to put under the tree. We also started an annual video call to talk about his presents. This gesture means the world to me, and I could not be any more proud and thankful of their acceptance of me, my child, and our lifestyle.
As part of my Christmas tradition I knit, ferociously! I have been Christmas knitting for over a decade now and I am truly hooked. However, even though I had a decade to practice, I never learned my lesson about starting early. This is usually when I begin to start looking at Christmas knits. Yes, now, in the middle of December when it's too late to get a back up present if I do not finish in time.
So, for those who are like me, I linked some of my favorite designs for Christmas knitting. They're all quick, easy to size, and can be finished in time for Christmas Eve....if you start soon! God Speed Knitters!!
x
Saf