There are a multitude of spiritual and religious celebrations and observances, including Christmas, at this time and all through the year. Many of them are steeped in rich and meaningful story. This blog entry is about Christmas, which I observe. It is a time of year that I love. There are many traditions of the Christmas season that I love; the lights, giving gifts to my family and friends, decorating my home with lights and items that are passed down through the generations. As I place certain items, I take time to think of where they came from and the people associated with them. To avoid my least favorite part of the season, the commercialism, I have most or all of my gifts purchased or made by Halloween. I am probably one of the few ‘mature people’ who likes snow and would run out to build a snowman to this day, if only Phoenix weather would oblige.
Yes, I am dedicated to playfulness. Maybe that’s why my favorite part of Christmas is its stories.
There are a plethora of stories and they all seem to be about hope in one way or another – just turn on the Hallmark channel! Hallmark has found a way to tell the same story over and over in (sometimes only slightly) different ways; a woman becomes single because of some tragedy or rough breakup, moves to a small town, falls in love with the vet who saves her beloved pet, there is some misunderstanding and the woman bolts out of fear, the vet shows up at her door with some small cheesy but meaningful gift wrapped in a big red bow, they laugh at their foolishness, her heart melts and suddenly she realizes that this is true love after all. Fin. People flock to this channel like crazy.
To be honest, I have never seen a Hallmark Christmas movie. As you see above, I don’t need to see one. I already have the gist. I have friends who put on their Hallmark Christmas movie t-shirts (Hallmark ain’t stupid) and curl up for marathons. The thing is, these movies are all about messages like “there IS romantic love out there for you,” “you ARE worth saving,” and “you CAN begin again.” Hope. It is at its core a season of hope for humanity.
I am not a Hallmark channel gal…yet. There are many stories of the season that I do love. A Christmas Carol is about a man who has closed his heart after too many painful events in his life cause him to lose hope for a bright future. I think this story is particularly poignant now, because of our collective experience in current events. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is another holiday favorite. It’s the story of someone born with a unique physical attribute that is different from the others. He is shunned, until he is needed (that part is upsetting, but sadly human). Through that need, minds are changed. He is seen and valued just for being himself and everyone sees the error of their ways and opens their hearts to acceptance. Fill in the blanks on the meaning there.
Any oppressed individual or group can play the part of Rudolph in this story. The elf in this story, Hermie, is not shunned immediately because of how he looks, but because of who he is inside. The Island of Misfit Toys is full of ‘unlovable’ toys who don’t fit the preconceived mold. There are many parallels to be drawn in the story of Rudolph.
I could go on and on; The Little Drummer Boy, The Year Without A Christmas Tree, The Grinch, A Charlie Brown Christmas, etc., etc., etc. They are all stories of the hope for change for the better. That’s my favorite part of the Christmas season – the hope I find in the stories I’ve heard and seen since a child.
Leave a Reply