Glazer: Scribe Waxes Nostalgic for 2016 Holiday Season

It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)

Once again, Thanksgiving and Christmas are back by popular demand…

Some of the folks that read this site have seen more go by than might lie ahead.

That’s life.

When you’re young it seems like growing up, having a car, making money, being in love, were all forever away. Then you awake one day and so much of life has already been lived. You worry about today, the bills, health issues, making a living, families past and present, were we’re going. It’s a time to reflect on where we are and where we have been – the long traveled road.

It’s a much different world today than the one we grew up in back in the 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and 90’s even.

For me it’s about all those sweet yesterdays and the pain and joy of living life.

Like so many of us, I think of wow, what might have been with some better decisions back in the days gone by. Why did I choose so many different roads? Maybe we all think that way.

Man, if I’d bought that stock or that small property, married a different girl, chosen a different profession, on and on. However, I think it’s better to reflect on what we did that worked, the life we’ve lived. Because it’s not coming background again.

Man, had someone told me when I was 13, “Hey Craig, you’re gonna go to school in Arizona, will live an early life as an outlaw, later a special agent with a badge, then you’ll own nightclubs, move to Hollywood, produce some movies, work with Muhammed Ali, meet and know hundreds of film and tv stars, date tons of smoking hot women, own a major comedy club in Kansas City, live a wild life… and oh, by the way, you will also go to prison, and not complete all your dreams – I’d have thought, wow, that sounds amazing.

Sure I’ve had been many tough years, scary times, unrest in my family, a failed marriage, made a number of wrong choices, but that’s life. We all have somewhat the same types of memories in different ways.

I guess in my darker moments I look back on the ones that were shinning and full of joy.

The wins not the loses.

I think it’s the little things we all share in common. One of mine was meeting that blonde life guard at the Georgetown Apartments when I was 14, a ninth grader. Her name was Mary Nootz and I fell madly in love with her. She was that blue eyed, perfect girl. I remember going into the club house, the upstairs pool room and sitting in front of a tv watching ‘The Wizard of Oz’ and making out with her.

She smelled like a summer pool and I was in heaven and so happy.

Sneaking out to meet her at night.

I had the prettiest girl in the world and I was so proud. Sure it lasted only a year or two and vanished, but that’s life moving along. I don’t know that I ever was in love with a girl any deeper than Mary. She calls me once every decade or so,  First love for both of us, now long gone. But it happened.

I’m sorry for many of the things I did and didn’t do.

Sound familiar?

Today my family has shrunk, all those relatives I used to see at the holidays are dead and gone – my mother, one of my brothers, grandparents – all gone.

So now I’m the older guy who tells the stories of yesterday, what was and is no more.

I remember Westport in the 70′,80’s. And when my brother Jeff and I took over in the 90’s – those were the days. All gone now. All we have are those snapshots of the past to reflect on.

Sure, I look forward to Chiefs games as I did as a kid. And I still hope for that big victory with a project or a new lady….but it’s not the same. The wins are smaller, the joy is short lived and aging is a bitch, right?

I don’t think life offers many answers, just more questions.

All we can do is look at our past and often look out the window and think, man did I do all that? We all have stories of great wins and losses. All of us.

For me the holidays will be time spent with my 84 year old dad, my brother and his sons who are about to finish college and… well, it’s a small group. I try and give my nephews words of wisdom, they do listen….Most of it is what not to do, ha!

In the end was life worth living? I think for most of us it was.

We all live in our own movie or book. We all have a few more pages to go or scenes to shoot, but the story is coming to a close. I know that sounds sad, but hey, we got to have a life. I guess that’s a great reward- we lived this long and did so much and we still have time to do more. That’s all we can do. Fight the good fight.

I hope all of you have a wonderful holiday season, reflect and appreciate those memories, all of us have them.