The Reason for the Season
While we all wither away in numerous traffic jams and shopping lines, thinking about the "perfect gift" for the child or adult who has everything, I thought I would offer a few thoughts on Christmas.
It is no accident that parents spend lavish amounts of money on Christmas. We are, after all, a nation that believes the "pursuit of happiness" is an endowed right. Any parent, aside from the shamefully negligent, wants to see his or her child smile and be happy, and thus, children can be easily gratified with the latest and greatest. In case you don't believe the youthful exuberance that just the right gift can bring, look at this recent BMW commercial that features a home movie of two youths opening the Christmas present of their dreams. The kids go beserk.
But, this season is also about children. After all, the reason we convene and exchange presents, whether we believe in Christ or not, is to celebrate youth. We gather family around, we exchange gifts, we take a moment to catch our breath. We also take a moment to award youth. As a child, I lay awake for hours hoping that Santa had come. When I grew older, I thought of the presents I was entitled to have by virtue of my hard work in school or my obedience to my household's rules. Now, I just want socks. However, the gifts, even the mundane ones, return us to our youth, when someone else took care of us.
The parent celebrates youth by supplying happiness, and in a way, that adult is reliving those sleepless nights of yesteryear, when a wagon or BB gun or doll would have made him or her go beserk. When Modern Mom can duplicate that feeling in her child, she feels validated and valued. When Modern Dad can savor that moment of anticipation, he can revisit his own parents' delight at his excitement 30 years prior.
More importantly, the season is about a child, one born in the dust and grime, but one born with hope and one born to instill hope. Regardless of how much people buy into the Christian message of this season, they still buy into hope. Even if we lose our collective mind as a society, we will never lose hope. It makes us human.
Merry Christmas (and Hope) to all, and to all a good night.
It is no accident that parents spend lavish amounts of money on Christmas. We are, after all, a nation that believes the "pursuit of happiness" is an endowed right. Any parent, aside from the shamefully negligent, wants to see his or her child smile and be happy, and thus, children can be easily gratified with the latest and greatest. In case you don't believe the youthful exuberance that just the right gift can bring, look at this recent BMW commercial that features a home movie of two youths opening the Christmas present of their dreams. The kids go beserk.
But, this season is also about children. After all, the reason we convene and exchange presents, whether we believe in Christ or not, is to celebrate youth. We gather family around, we exchange gifts, we take a moment to catch our breath. We also take a moment to award youth. As a child, I lay awake for hours hoping that Santa had come. When I grew older, I thought of the presents I was entitled to have by virtue of my hard work in school or my obedience to my household's rules. Now, I just want socks. However, the gifts, even the mundane ones, return us to our youth, when someone else took care of us.
The parent celebrates youth by supplying happiness, and in a way, that adult is reliving those sleepless nights of yesteryear, when a wagon or BB gun or doll would have made him or her go beserk. When Modern Mom can duplicate that feeling in her child, she feels validated and valued. When Modern Dad can savor that moment of anticipation, he can revisit his own parents' delight at his excitement 30 years prior.
More importantly, the season is about a child, one born in the dust and grime, but one born with hope and one born to instill hope. Regardless of how much people buy into the Christian message of this season, they still buy into hope. Even if we lose our collective mind as a society, we will never lose hope. It makes us human.
Merry Christmas (and Hope) to all, and to all a good night.
posted by Henry Plantagenet at 9:04 PM
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