Here are two Christmas memories from The Grascals, starting with banjo man, Aaron McDaris.

My Grandpa would always read the Christmas story out of the bible to us every year before we could open our presents and looking back on it, that was really a good tradition. Everyone would be sitting by the old pot belly stove and – because the living room was hardly big enough that you couldn’t be anywhere without being too close to the stove – we would have all the windows open because the heat would almost run us out of there!!

After he finished reading, he would pass around all of our presents so we could open them and my Grandmother would play the harmonica for us. Later on, when I discovered that I could play music, I would pick banjo with her and my Dad would play the guitar, and we would all sing and play Christmas music for the whole family.

Next, we hear from guitarist/vocalist, Jamie Johnson.

I will always cherish the twenty Christmases spent with my brother, Brad. He was the biggest Osborne Brothers and bluegrass fan ever and is the reason for my presence in the bluegrass world today.

He left this world in 1991 and I’d sure love to have another Christmas day with him! So please, take time to look around you and all of your loved ones this Christmas and be grateful for them, and tell them that you love them and cherish them.