Christmas growing up - it seemed to last far longer than the 25 days of December. And the season really did to seem different than any other time of the year. I do not know that I can point to a time when it started (other than I really do not think that it was the day after Thanksgiving), but it did "start". And maintain all the way to Christmas Day.
Now, I have almost completely lost that sense.
The Christmas Season, for many years now at least, is really subsumed into the end of the year and all that has to be done (mostly at work) to get there. Work has become the all consuming force of the season, intensified by the fact that all things that must get done in the year must get done by then - oddly enough, no matter how well you plan or schedule, it always seems to come down to the end.
Yes, it might be acknowledged and yes, some things might be done - a party perhaps, or a luncheon - but the need to finish things out is what really dominates one's calendar and the landscape. Any sense of the Season is bucketed to the last two or three days before Christmas.
Just once - just one more time - I would like to have an actual sense of Christmas again, to be able to enjoy all of the songs, the decorations, the traditions - the "Christmas Spirit" that we sing about often but I seem to experience not at all.
Charles Dickens said that the reformed Scrooge kept Christmas every day in his heart. I wish I knew his secret.
When I was out doing errands last Friday, I noticed less Christmas decorations in general, at least on store fronts and the streets. The displays in the stores are all sales displays. The music, well, simply repeating the words "Christmas," "Santa Claus," and "Saint Nick" to a rock, hip-hop, or CW beat evokes nothing except, perhaps, a desire to exit the store more quickly. Political correctness has killed Christmas for the most part. Yet we're supposed to spend, spend, spend on gifts for the sake of the economy. There's nothing there to celebrate.
ReplyDeleteI think we'd all do well to contemplate how Ebeneezer Scrooge kept Christmas every day in his heart. The true reason for the season ought to dominate our attitudes and actions all year long.
I could be full a beans. But have a care, Mighty Warrior Poet. I've been there, where I worked insane hours and couldn't see anything beyond the front bumper. Many of my friends have too. Afterwards we all sat around and wondered why we did it in the first place.
ReplyDeleteI missed my daughter's first steps, her first words, her first solo bicycle ride... Perhaps I should not be surprised that she hates me so.
When we were growing up, TB, the PC police were hidden. The "live and let live" was still alive. The reason for the season was alive, as Leigh has said.
ReplyDeleteI was reminded today that the city Hubby grew up in used to have lights and Nativity everywhere. Even at (or especially at?) City Hall.
I remember when we would drive around town to see the lights.
Many towns don't even put lights up any more, for fear someone will sue, I suppose.
I am glad the kids are grown because I haven't "felt Christmas" in years.
I just thank God for every day He gives me. And all He does for us.
Just wait until you have grandchildren and they are coming home for Christmas! You'll find the Christmas you are looking for. Peace of the Season, Julia
ReplyDeleteLeigh, I suspect a lot of that is true - certainly the thing that mostly screams "Christmas" anymore is anything commercial. That said, I still take some comfort in the fact that there are plenty of Christmas lights in our neighborhood.
ReplyDeleteWho knows - like many other things, we may see the actual holiday of Christmas disappear for some secular holiday, leaving the actual celebration to the Christians (as has happened in other times with other things).
Glen, it is a hard thing. We miss a lot of things by working to make sure our families are provided for, and sometimes I think we can get sucked into thinking that more makes it better. I struggle with that, for sure. That said, at some point our children become adults and are responsible for their own decisions - and we have little enough to be blamed for them.
ReplyDeleteLinda, certainly our society has become much less tolerant of outwardly Christian beliefs and certainly a change in culture has accelerated. At the same time, I wonder how much we Christians have contributed to the issue. Have we made things as commercial as everything else, or have we put Christ at the head of the season (sadly, I have certainly failed in this)?
ReplyDeleteJulia, that is a fine point and hopefully something we will have to look forward to sometime!
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