Story by Lesa Crowell
You know the old saying, “slow as Christmas?” Well, I think Christmas, like everything else in this world, is fast. It used to be that, when you were a kid, Halloween was the first big holiday. You could not wait for it to get here. Candy and ghosts and carnage!!! Those were the days.
Now Halloween is just the opening act of what retailers like to call “the holiday season.” (Might I add …… “that never ends.”) One night, it’s “The Great Pumpkin;” the next night, it’s “Rudolph.” Parents hardly recover from the candy high and then, boom – it’s Christmas, and you know what that means…dealing with the in-laws.
I have a collection of in-laws that would make William Faulkner blush. I love most of them, tolerate some of them, and pray daily for the rest to move to the North Pole.
Speaking of the North Pole, do kids these days — I am really old now — even believe in Santa Claus? I don’t think they do, but who can blame them? I mean really, what child in his or her right mind, who has ever visited a Toys”R”Us, could believe that an old man, some elves and some flying reindeer could build and deliver toys to all the children in the world?
I don’t see it.
For the record, is Santa even a good role model for children? He breaks and enters, eats nothing but junk food and exploits the less fortunate for labor intensive projects.
I think that Santa is probably also responsible for global warming. Chew on that for a minute. Hole in the ozone; where does Santa live? Maybe the EPA should drop in and take a look around at the little operation he has going up there. For that matter, maybe PETA and the ACLU should stop by as well.
Rudolph may not have a red nose — he might be on meth or “Magic Dust.” Maybe that’s what it takes to keep up with the his buddies as they try to fly around the world in one night — in a sleigh not featured on “Pimp My Ride.”
I skipped Christmas two years ago … thank you, John Grisham. It was everything I imagined it to be.
I spent quality time with my family without interruption, without drama, without chaos and re-gifted presents. I felt the magnitude of God in that moment on that day. That is what Christmas is really about, being with God in awe of a present that can’t be wrapped.
Why do we need a season to remind us of what we should do in our lives every single day? Why do we feel the need to buy presents that most of us don’t need and only show love for our fellow man two weeks out of the year?
I say, ‘don’t spend your money on gifts for people that have everything.’ Adopt a family from an angel tree. Instead of decorating your home, go to a retirement home and decorate a room for someone who will appreciate it more than the neighbors you are trying to upstage.
How many meals could you donate for the money spent buying a single video game? I bet Gary and Marilyn Williamson, directors of Main Street Mission in Russellville, could tell you.
This holiday season, remember what has been given to you “because to whom much is given, much is expected.”
Here Comes… uh, Goes Santa Claus
