Christmas Card

Sending Christmas card was one of my Christmas ritual until I was in was a sophomore of junior in college. I could spend much time looking for best Christmas cards that fit my budget. Pictures on those cards would bring my imagination to places covered with snow, with snowman and conifer trees in front of Victorian houses and children with their toboggan and scarf were laughing enjoying their time. I didn't care about santa and his reindeer, so they never came to my imagination Not only that, I enjoyed writing on the cards using my best handwriting, gluing stamps, then inserting them to mailbox also.

Yet, the most excitement was when I heard a honk (the honk was loud, kinda annoying) from mailman's motorcycle around Christmas time. I would run outside, receive a heap of mails and hope to find my name written on those envelopes. There's a joy when I received card from friends. Then I saved those card in my 'card' drawer that was located at the lower part of my pink desk I got when I was a third grader. When I cleaned that desk before that desk was given to someone, I found piles of Christmas cards since I was in elementary school.

As time went by, the technology become more advance, people no longer depend on Christmas card to send Christmas greeting and wishes to their respected ones. Like most people that I know, I also preferred sending message (sms) from cell phone because I could send one for several people at once. Besides, it is cheaper, more practical, and less using paper. People also get very creative with creating messages. Even with the earliest cell phone, they could create clever graphics using limited symbols and pixels available at that time.

Slightly parallel to sms trend, e-card and other electronic media was great choice to send Christmas wish without traditional-Christmas-card hassle. In my country at that time, not many people had their personal internet connection, so many had to go to limited number of internet cafe. Sending message still won that years. About after 2004, getting internet connection has becoming easier. Social networks played big role in society and people change information, greet and meet through it replacing traditional cards or even cell-phone' messages. That time, I was not surprised when I heard from the news about store and card company complained about their decreasing demand for their products.

Moving to the US in 2005, I experienced different situation. Cell phone wasn't as common as that of in Indonesia; and sending text message boomed just now and mostly for young generation. Internet connection was so easy and cheap to get, yet somewhat couldn't fully replace that classical-annual practice. On my first Christmas, I was surprised to receive Christmas cards from friends mostly from friends that we met every week. Those were my first Christmas cards after my years dived in sms era. Some even handed it to us directly when they met us. Seriously, I was puzzled. Back home, Christmas card works as extended hand for people that we can't reach directly. I guess here in the US, it is more like a culture.

After that first year, not much for getting surprised, I try to understand Christmas card purpose, but enjoy cards that has their kids picture. Year after year we can see how much the kids has grown! We never replied their Christmas card nor sent to our other friends because we thought we meet the people anyway, and always wish them a merry Christmas on Christmas service. Yet, year after year we kept receiving cards from friends. After 4 years, this year we decided to follow the culture and give our very best Christmas greeting to our dear friends through Christmas cards