What gives boys holiday joy

Guys love Christmas. It’s true. Anytime huge meals, extreme sports and free stuff coincide, guys are totally there. In fact, if it weren’t for bikinis in the summer time, the holiday season would undoubtedly be every guy’s favorite time of year. But a guy’s love for Christmas goes deeper than these superficial reasons.

Every December right after finals, I load up into a car with my family and head to my grandparents’ houses in Oregon and Idaho. While I don’t love leaving sunny California for the frigid north, I do enjoy hanging out with all my cousins who I only see once a year and eating the gigantic feast my grandma prepares when we visit. But the best part is, without question, the presents.

My Christmas list looks mostly the same every year. I ask for guitars and guitar strings, the most recent Call of Duty title, any James Bond movies that recently came out on Blu- Ray, assorted odds and ends like the Monty Python’s Flying Circus Box Set and a panini maker. And of course, my ultimate wish, a hot Italian supermodel girlfriend.

Each year I usually get the same kind of things. Underwear from my aunt. Gift cards from cousins. Video games from my sister. Movies from my mom. The Monty Python’s Flying Circus Box Set from my dad. So far, I still haven’t received my super hot Italian supermodel girlfriend, even though I put her on the list every year. But they all have the same thing in common.

Love.

Someone liked me enough to go get them for me. Someone loved me enough to spend their winter driving me to my grandparents against my will so I could have memories about them for the rest of my life after they are gone. That’s why guys really love the holidays.

Sure, the holidays might not be as fun without those things, but Christmas wouldn’t mean anything without love. Even though they may not have gotten me a hot Italian supermodel girlfriend, I know my family loves me. And that’s why no matter how much I moan and whine, I love spending the holidays with them.