Tag Archives: Magic of Christmas

Life Lessons

Did The Grinch Have It Right?

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GrinchBookSS01I think that the Grinch might have had it right. If we took away the ribbons, tags, packages, boxes or bags, I don’t think that Christmas would actually come at all.

We would not find people singing in a circle being positive and loving. There would be chaos.   People would be in fear for the economy, (by the way, holiday buying should not be an indicator of the health of the economy), angry about their loss of new gadgets, and I think it might lead to a national emergency. The media would have a field day, proclaiming the end of the world or blaming it all on a terrorist plot to end the United States as we know it.

When I was a kid I always felt bad for the Who’s down in Whoville, but now I am not so sure that I was rooting for the wrong side. The Grinch might have had the right idea all the time.

“Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before! What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store. What if Christmas…perhaps…means a little bit more!”

It is my observation that this simply isn’t true in our society. I would love to believe that we ,as a people, are more capable of love than we are of being greedy and judgmental, but the facts do not favor this.

angry chrixtmansPeople get depressed, angry and upset far more than they give, love and understand others. If you want to be brave and spend some time in any retail store this year you will find far more faces of worry, anger and crying. There are a lot of reasons people feel badly.  If people can’t buy all of the things that they feel they want to, they feel bad. If they don’t get enough useless stuff, they feel bad. Here is what we should be happy about this time of year.

  1. You are healthy
  2. You are loved
  3. You are able to grow and work toward goals
  4. Your loved ones are  healthy and happy
  5. We are relatively free to live our lives
  6. Each new day is filled with possibility and promise, that it is up to you to fulfill.

None of these things costs a cent  and all people can be happy about them. Wrap that up and put it under a tree this year. I think that if we removed the stores from Christmas, people would protest in the street.

Christmas Doesn’t Come From A Store

In the end, the feeling surrounding Christmas can not be bought, and it is simply valuing people over material things. If that were popular more people would have a merrier Christmas.

No matter how much money we spend, or material things we receive, it will

Magic in your Heart
Magic in your Heart

not make you a better person in any way. Giving should be our motto, accepting the love from others, and being grateful for all that we have in our lives will make the Christmas Season special.  Give the gift of your time, your humor, your intellect or your kindness to someone and that will build a cheer that will last all year long.

So even if I decide to root for the Grinch and take away Christmas, I know that should not really happen because somewhere, there is a child who feels the magic that this season can bring. Christmas is for children and I wish there was a way to keep the magic and get rid of the commercialism. That would truly be a Christmas miracle.  Neither the Grinch or myself could be upset about that.

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Inspiration

Christmas Should Be the Cure

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Why Christmas should cure people.

christmas wonder
Christmas should be a time of wonder, and if it isn’t, look within yourself.

It is easy to see the problems with the world today, life’s issues seem to force themselves into our consciousness.  There are those without enough to eat, no family, no home and no hope of anything any better.  This is impossible to fix completely but Christmas gives us our best opportunity to make changes in the quality of life for all people.  How come we so often miss the mark?  Why is it that so many people are not really happy on Christmas?

Commercialism Robs Gratitude

greedmas
Too often it seems Christmas lists look like this. Greed is not good.

The increase in commercialism around this time has made Christmas the season of expectations not of gift giving and gratitude.  People, especially young people, spend the holiday wrapped up in what is being wrapped up for them.  Rather than being concerned with the feeling of Christmas which has always been love, they are worried about what is in this for them.

I feel old when I say I remember a different time, but I do.  There were small gifts that were really appreciated by those receiving them.  I remember not only receiving gifts that were thoughtful, and just what I wanted, and I remember searching for just that perfect gift that cost under five dollars for my parents or siblings.  It was a simpler time, even though Christmas was commercialized then, it was nowhere near the media advertising blitz it is today.

It is no wonder people are so messed up around Christmas, if your intake of expensive electronic gizmos and gadgets doesn’t equal the price of a small import car, the holiday is a failure.  Where did we go wrong?

The Magic of Christmas

gratitude of Christmas
Try some of these thoughts and emotions this year.

It doesn’t have to be that way, and it is simple to reclaim.  If you are Christian then remember the actual meaning of the holiday.  The message is one of love, power, and wonder.  If you aren’t Christian but like the holiday, simply remember that the act of giving is a good thing, and has the power to transcend culture, distance, and differences of all kinds.  Giving is a two-part transaction, which should never be forgotten.  On the one hand, there is the giving of a gift.  It simply has to be given with an open heart, to make someone else happy.  That is it.

The second part of the transaction is receiving, with gratitude, and appreciation, that someone else in the world cares enough about you to take the time to find you a gift. There was a time in life, that I took gifts for granted myself, but age and time have made receiving gifts of any kind a wonder.  I appreciate the thought, even more than the gift itself, because that is the real treasure anyway.

This is the magic that comes with this season each year and seems to be lost in the commercialism and greed that pervades the holiday.  The act of giving is powerful, but the feeling of gratitude for the gifts and love of another can carry you to new heights.  Having a gratitude in your heart can allow you to find the strength to make it through tough times because it is not really how much crap you accumulate in this life, it is how much others care about you and your presence in their lives that matters in the end.

It Will All Be OK

So when you start to feel overwhelmed with the season and find that you are getting frustrated with the commercialism and greed that seems to be all around you, then you need to look inside yourself and find the spirit of giving and the gratitude for all that you have.  If that is your focus you will have a much more pleasant holiday season and life.

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