Holiday Reflections from an RV

It’s been a different year for everyone as a result of the global pandemic. But it’s especially been a different year for us as we transitioned from living in an 1,800-square-foot house to a 400-square-foot fifth wheel RV. At no time have we felt the change more than during the holidays. 

For many years, we hosted family gatherings at our house since we had one of the largest homes and families. At Thanksgiving, the pleasant aroma of roasting turkey would waft through the air while elegant creations and massive balloons floated by the TV as part of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. 

Our kids would help clean and prepare the tables with tablecloths and place settings before occupying themselves with games and looking through the sales ads for gifts they might like. Extended family would start arriving in the afternoon carrying large pies, cans of whipped cream, rolls, drinks, and anything else to make the meal complete. 

After setting the food on the tables, we’d gather together to give thanks to God for each other and for our many blessings. Then we’d sit and dig in. It never ceased to amaze me how quickly we could devour what took hours to create. After the main meal, we’d transition to coffee and dessert, followed by a competitive card game of Big Boss, Little Boss. 

When our extended family members grew tired of games or felt ready for a change of scenery, they’d head home, and we’d settle in for a relaxing evening, which usually involved a Christmas movie. 

No Room in the Trailer

This Thanksgiving, our 400 square feet didn’t allow much space for a family gathering. Nor did our little 19-inch oven offer much room for a family-size turkey. So, we had to scramble to come up with an alternate plan to enjoy Thanksgiving with our family. Bob’s mom graciously offered to host the event, and he and I spent most of the day there preparing. 

We made turkey, stuffing, green bean casserole, cooked carrots, butternut squash, mashed potatoes, gravy, rolls, cranberry sauce, pie, and whipped cream. Our three kids in the area and their spouses joined us, and we ate on the deck, enjoying a beautiful warm day and thankful to be together.

New Christmas Tradition

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This Christmas has presented its own challenges. When downsizing, we knew we wouldn’t have room for a 7-foot Christmas tree and all that went with it in our new living quarters. So, we gave away all our Christmas decorations except our two stockings. Traditionally for the past nearly 30 years, we’ve decorated for Christmas the day after Thanksgiving. We wanted to do that this year too, but we wanted to do more than just hang Christmas stockings. 

Venturing to our local Goodwill, we found a 2-foot Christmas tree, some Christmas balls, and a string of Christmas lights — all for only $6. The lights would have been too heavy for the little Charlie Brown Christmas tree, so we put them around a window. 

Setting up the lights and tree inside our tiny home gave me a sense of joy and brought a smile to my face. We also bought a string of colored LED lights to adorn the outside of the trailer. We’re only lacking a little nativity scene to make our decorations complete. 

But we encountered a new problem. There’s no room to put gifts under our Lilliputian tree (See what I did there?), and finding spaces to hide said gifts — especially for each other — has been challenging. We’ve had to get pretty creative. 

New Appreciation for the Tiny Stable

In Christmases past, we hosted a Christmas Eve gathering where my parents would provide a smorgasbord of food and we’d engage in meaningful conversations with family members before a lively gift exchange. Everybody would part ways, and we’d have our own family celebration and gift exchange the next morning.

This Christmas, we faced the same lack-of-space predicament for a family gathering that we met at Thanksgiving. Thankfully, Bob’s mom has once again agreed to let us gather at her place to celebrate. We’re thankful for her hospitality, for the ability to spend time with family at the holidays, for our health, and for each other. 

But most importantly, we’re thankful that, even though there was no room in the inn in Bethlehem, God sent his son to Earth to be our Savior.