Gerrit,
I've never met you, only known you from this board and after reading your post, was moved profoundly and thought I'd share a different view of yours if you may.
From a son loosing it's father.... Dad past away 3 years ago... never easy to loose your best friend at any time of year, especially when enjoying the great things in life but when the moment arrives, the world ends and seems like there's no way out.
So Christmas without my dad will never be the same simply because he was my icon, my guidance, my mentor, family to him meant more then anyone, come Christmas, family reunion was all he thought... and much more.
I can only cherish our moments together to this date and truly miss him. I try to pass down his wisdom to my family but find myself short of this task just because of the influence he had and because he had a strong determined personality.
God bless... Merry Christmas and Happy New Year
Jacques