Elvis' favorite time of the year was Christmas. Not surprising since he was religious, knew God and loved Jesus Christ. The joy of giving was his personal gift year-round, however, at Christmastime Elvis Presley became "Santa Claus" to those who knew him, to strangers, and even for the sickly children in hospitals.
Graceland was a beautiful home and it was perfect for Elvis; he didn't require a ten-million dollar mansion with twenty rooms and ten bathrooms. Even the pool was modest. Elvis would rather spend large sums of money to help those less fortunate. At Christmas, Graceland became a magical place, a wonderland of heartfelt spirit for an entire community, and the world.
After the death of Gladys, Christmas would never be the same for Elvis. That one particular Christmas after her death was spent with his father and grandmother in Bad Neuheim, Germany, for Elvis was still in the service. He celebrated the birth of the infant Jesus not to receive gifts, though he was like a child when he received them, but to give them he felt was the true purpose, the true meaning of Christmas. While Christmas was a sad time for Elvis, those close to him knew only too well that Graceland was his kingdom and the place far from which he often had no desire to stray. Yet, his career called for him to be away many a time at Christmas. To Elvis the memories of his beloved Momma is what kept the tradition alive for him and he never wanted to let those memories go. He couldn't. He loved the season and the time spent with family and friends. When the magic was there, it was he who helped to create it. What is most important to remember is that it was Elvis' utmost desire to make others happy no matter that within himself, his heart was broken.
The memories stemmed from that one Christmas, back in Tupelo, Mississippi, when Elvis' Momma and Daddy had scrimped and saved for a new bicycle for their boy. It was a beauty and young Elvis was the talk of the neighborhood. He was so proud of the bicycle, he rode up and down Saltillo Road, the envy of his friends. For some reason, whatever was in his heart at that time, Elvis thought only to share his ride with his friends who were equally as poor. But, something that one day made Elvis suddenly decide he had enjoyed the bike long enough and, so he decided to give the bike away to another boy he thought might enjoy it more. When Elvis' parents asked him about the bike, where it was, Elvis told them he gave it to a friend. Vernon politely retrieved the bicycle back from the boy's family because money was hard to come by for the Presleys and they were not certain there would be many Christmases ahead where they could afford such a gift for their son. Elvis, however, no longer desired the bike. He continued to feel that someone else deserved it more than he did, someone who had less than he did. He gave it away again and this time Vernon and Gladys understood that their boy's heart was in the right place.
As 1960 approached, Christmas for Elvis became more a time spent distant from family and friends as his career called for his presence elsewhere. Christmas, no matter where he was, would always bring out the little boy in him. One memorable gift Elvis received came from the "Memphis Mafia," a five hundred dollar statue of Jesus Christ which Elvis kept in his bedroom on a small altar he had made. This gift, as precious as it was, could not compare to the gifts Elvis gave to his entourage and their wives over the years including cash bonuses, cars, jewelry, and fur coats. On family and friends he spent lavishly.
As Elvis began to feel ill and depressed, there seemed to be no "home" Christmas as he fondly remembered from the past, but then he would find a renewed sense of joy in the new memories he would create on Christmas mornings with his precious Lisa Marie.
Gladys always tried to make things festive in her own way each and every holiday, and Elvis kept some of that festiveness with him for the remainder of his days. He just loved to decorate for Christmas and decorating Graceland was no exception. For family, and for the fans, Elvis went all out decking the halls with the hope of bringing to everyone else good Christmas cheer. It is not surprising that his birthday came in the mid of the Christmas season.
Perhaps the most memorable of all his Christmas presents came during Christmas of 1957. Elvis star was on the rise and he had just settled into Graceland. Christmas of that year, the first at Graceland, Elvis planned to do it up nice for his Momma and Daddy. However, five days earlier the postman delivered an unexpected present, a "greeting" from Uncle Sam! That Christmas day Elvis read, and re-read the notice that said he had been drafted into the United States Army. (I believe Elvis is holding onto "sweet pea" as he reads.) Fortunately, he was able to ask for a Christmas Eve deferrment which then set his induction back until March 20th. The belief is that he did it for his Momma so as not to ruin her memories of Christmases to come.
