Home for the Holidays

There’s a lot of things I like about the holiday season.  One of my favorites is the music. Some people may tire of the Christmas carols, but not me. I will admit, I’d like to hear them after Thanksgiving, instead of right after Labor Day, but hearing a favorite carol helps put me in the mood for the season.

One of the songs that I look forward to hearing each year is Home for the Holidays. Perry Como released the first recorded version in 1954, and it has been covered by many artists, including Garth Brooks, Cindy Lauper and Norah Jones, the Carpenters and Johnny Mathis. Ironically, Christmas is never mentioned in the lyrics, but it touches on the universal longing for home and family. The song’s commercial success across 70 years and multiple genres is evidence of how its themes resonate with people.

One theme of the song is holiday travel. From Atlantic to Pacific, the traffic is terrific. Home is where you’re from, and the place you want be. Familiar food, familiar surroundings.

Another line from the song goes:

Take a bus, take a train

Go and hop an aeroplane

Put the wife and kiddies in the family car

For the pleasure that you bring

When you make that doorbell ring

No trip could be too far

Part of the joy of being home is the time spent with loved ones. The author recognizes the joy that homecoming brings to those who are home. A visit with parents, grandparents or childhood friends. My memories of Christmas growing up include time spent with cousins who also came home for the holidays. The food, the games and inside jokes, the things that made us . . . us, a family.

The themes of the song illustrate the wishes of many older adults throughout the year.  The desire to be home, in familiar surroundings and near the people we hold dear, and not just during the holidays. The desire to age in place, in dignity and comfort, drives much of the work of Benjamin Rose, and how we often define our successes. Working together, we can help make Home for the Holidays a reality for more older adults and their families.

Thank you for your support of Benjamin Rose.  And, Happy Holidays!

By the way…“Home for the Holidays” is also the theme used to promote awareness of the Eldercare Locator and services for older adults. Eldercare locator is a free, nonprofit, noncommercial source for information on programs and services for seniors and caregivers. Find local resources by zip code, county or state: call 1.800.677.1116 or visit online www.eldercare.acl.gov.