It's a Wonderful Life!

It's Christmas Eve at my house. Every year, I have one tradition that I have to do - watch "It's a Wonderful Life." I know it sounds completely cheesey, but in times when I was feeling particularly depressed, I always felt a kinship with George, and a feeling that maybe in some small way, I do make a difference in the world. That's a good feeling to have on Christmas.

I loved laying on the couch in my pajamas, wrapped in a blanket, with the only lights coming from the TV and the colored lights on the tree. Like tonight, I rarely get to see the whole thing from start to finish. Mostly, I watch it on TV these days because the copy I have is on VHS, and hooking up the VCR takes someone with an engineering degree.

I love every inch of Bedford Falls in that movie, and feel it has even more meaning to me because I grew up in a town called Bedford. In fact, their downtown is decorated like Bedford Falls in the movie every year.

I always wanted to marry someone like George, someone kind, someone with integrity, someone with dreams. And the old house he and Mary live in is my dream house. There's so much humor in the movie, too. I love that people had the same sense of humor then as we do now. It's always hard to imagine people back in that time (like my grandparents), doing such crazy things, dating, pulling pranks, etc. But I guess they were young once, too.

I know it's sappy, but this movie always gives me hope for Christmas and the days to come. And it only has this power for me on Christmas Eve.