Snow in Southern California

Perhaps as a result of Loma Linda University being a private graduate school (and the increased tuition income that allows), the Student Association’s Christmas party this week was fantastic. In addition to folks spending Monday through Thursday wrapping every vertical object near the party area with lights, they brought in snow. In Southern California, where it was around 75 at lunchtime that day, we were able to have snowball fights during the Christmas party. I thought that was pretty epic.

In addition to bringing in snow, they had brought horse-drawn carriages to give us rides around the campus. Rachel and I and our friends made a beeline for them as soon as they pulled up, beating the line to be the first people to ride. The carriages were also covered in lights and the horses had bows braided into their manes—all very festive. There was a turkey dinner that was tasty (despite being vegetarian), and for dessert they had caramel apples. Everybody got little stockings with candy and a five-bladed razor (we stocked up on those). The grad students even got a group picture with Santa.

I think that the older you get, the faster Christmas sneaks up on you. I remember getting an Advent calendar every year and feeling like there was an eternity before I would be able to open the next day’s window. Now, Thanksgiving and Christmas feel more like a one-two punch that leave me in a daze. Upon awakening I realize that it’s a new year and I’ve just written the date incorrectly again.

It was great to have the chance to get excited about Christmas, to do some of the fun little things that always made it so special when I was younger, despite being far from home. It’s too easy as an adult to just think about the meaning of Christmas and worry about buying people presents. Snow and horse carriages went a long way toward giving us back a little bit of the magic.