Whitman County Gazette - Serving Whitman County since 1877

As a youngster, I looked forward to Christmas. I loved the food, the traditions and especially the presents — what kid doesn’t?

In high school and college, the luster subsided. As a wrestler, Christmas was a time for fasting so I didn’t have to move up a weight class. I dreaded running extra bleachers, doing additional up-downs and all the “fat man” jokes from teammates.

Christmas would become just one of those “OK” holidays for me after college. As a journalist, I would be lucky to have the day off. And since I continued to wrestle competitively until I was about 30, I was st...