Soothing Saturday: The Great Christmas Movie Takeover
You know that feeling when the rain is hammering the windows, the wind’s howling like a pack of wolves that missed their dinner, and you think, “Perfect day to stay in and relax”?
Soothing Saturday — is my little corner for slowing down and stepping away from my usual genealogy deep dives. Think of it as a gentle exhale at the end of the week — a space for reflections, small joys, and simple stories written just for the pleasure of it.
But then… I heard it.
That fateful sentence from the other room — my wife’s voice, sweet and innocent as a snowflake:
“Ooh, I think there’s a Christmas movie marathon on!”
And just like that, my weekend peace was gone.
You see, the weather outside may be frightful, but the real storm brews when my wife gets the remote during “Christmas movie season.” And yes, apparently, “season” now begins in October and lasts until, oh, about Easter.
Before I could protest, the TV was taken hostage. And what appeared on screen? You guessed it — another Hallmark-style Christmas movie.
You know the ones.
There’s always a big-city woman named Holly, Noelle, or Joy — she’s wearing heels completely unsuited for snow, heading back to her aggressively festive hometown. There’s a rugged guy in flannel, probably named Nick, who runs a struggling Christmas tree farm or bakery. At first, they clash (“You don’t understand small-town life!”), but by the third mug of cocoa, they’re saving Christmas and each other from a vaguely defined corporate threat.
And I sit there thinking aloud, Didn’t we watch this exact one last week?
To which my wife replies, “No, that was A Christmas Promise in Pineville. This is A Pineville Christmas Promise. Completely different.”
Of course. Silly me.
Do you remember that Christmas movie set in Bergen? That was… eh… something, wasn’t it? I honestly thought I was having a stroke — I couldn’t understand a word those so-called “Norwegians” were speaking in “Norwegian”.
I turn to make another sarcastic comment — but she’s already in another world.
Oh, she’s counting loops on her knitting. -Is it called loops? Stitches maybe? Heck if I know. It’s amazing how she can knit a complex pattern while at the same time watch TV.
I swear all these movies come from the same secret Christmas Movie Generator:
Input: [Big City Career Woman], [Flannel Guy], [Snowstorm], [Cute Puppy gone missing] → OUTPUT: “A Christmas Miracle Under the Mistletoe.”
Now, don’t get me wrong — there’s something oddly comforting about them. They’re predictable in a world that isn’t. No one dies, no one curses, and everything smells like cinnamon and hope.
But as I sit here, banished from my documentaries, I can’t help but wonder how long this will last.
Maybe I’ll make peace with it. Maybe I’ll even start enjoying them.
The rhythmic clicking from Inge Lise’s knitting pins blends in with tubular bells and glockenspiel from the TV, while fake snow, Christmas lights and rosy-cheeked townspeople come together in a greater dimension.
The truth is, Inger Lise and I are pretty much on the same page when it comes to the quality of these movies. She just wants a pleasant soundtrack while finishing off some knitting projects that will end up under someone’s Christmas tree. She wouldn’t have protested if I wanted to commandeer the remote, but I’ll just sneak off with my tablet and watch men in dirty clothes dig mummies out of the sand or cars out of the snow. They are my people. We are all bit rough at the edges, and we all speak English with a terrible accent.
Either way, it’s a Soothing Saturday — the weather’s awful, the coffee’s warm, and love, archaeologists, and car rescuers always triumph by the time the director shouts “cut!”.
Until next time — may your coffee be warm, your records be legible, and your heart find a reason to smile. Have a great weekend!
I guess I will just have to ask AI to write me something about Pineville, Christmas & Promises and see what comes up? Surely it will be a third version of what you think you have seen before – maybe?