PA RUM PUM PUM PUM . . .

I detest Christmas carols (and yes, I'm going to call them CHRISTMAS carols, because that's what it IS -- it's CHRISTMAS. I respect that you believe a different god, or no god at all maybe, but Christmas is Christmas, and Jesus was still born and still saved the world, and thus Christmas means very very very much to me, and when I wish you a merry Christmas, it's not because I'm trying to diss you or make you feel marginalized by a major religion; it's because I'm just wanting to share with you the joy in my heart. So there! Joyful, aren't we?!)

I really do. That's so Scroogey, and I do apologize to all of my dearest who just love boogie-ing down to "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" (you know who you are).

But I don't think it's because I actually hate the Christmas carols themselves. It's because I love the Christmas hymns so much more. O come, all ye faithful; joyful and triumphant! Joy to the world, the Lord is come. For unto us a Child is born. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel. Fall on your knees; oh hear the angel's voices! Hallelujah! Gloria!

Who needs the little drummer boy, really?

I think that this crotchety attitude towards Christmas carols (and why, oh why, do the malls always choose the worst versions of them to play over the loudspeakers?!), is just an additional sign of me, well, getting old. Not old, but older. And maybe I don't even mean aging, but just ... changing, growing, thinking more carefully. Cheech said it best in his most recent note to me: it's all about family, being home, being with loved ones, being with the Lord. The tree, the gifts, the parties, the stress -- sure, it has some meaning, somewhere, at some point. But not anymore.

When did this happen? I'm not entirely sure. But 2005 has definitely had something to do with it. War; heartbreak; change for the better; change for the worse; moving on; mass destruction; people I love touched by disease and death; politicians arguing all the time; stress and trauma ... it's such a morbid laundry list of life. Still, I am grateful for this year, because it has also been filled with loyalty, steadfastness, new discoveries, honesty, heart-cleansing weeping, generosity, hard work and the understanding and unconditional love of my dearest and most beloved friends and family. All of these things have added up to be the best gifts of the season, and I really do find that most other things are completely unnecessary, and even unwanted.

Alright, maybe with the exception of the new iPod, but I'm trying not to be greedy here.

I think that the other realization I have come to in my newfound, bizarr-o "maturity" is the realization that Christmas, like most other holidays now, is just waaaaay over-hyped. There are these huge expectations of roaring fires and glorious Christmas trees, luxurious meals, piles and piles of gifts of "things I've always wanted!", and yes, even visions of sleigh rides and mountains of fluffy snow. But no. After everything I've been through this year, after everything I've seen those around me go through, and after everything we have all learned together and apart, it is evermore clear to me that Christmas is simple and hype-less. God loved the world, so He sent His only Son, to show us what love is, and to die on the cross with the weight of the world on His shoulders, so that we might not have to live a meaningless life and suffer the same fate.

That's Christmas. No Scrooge included.

New Hope celebrated Christmas Sunday today, even though next Sunday actually is Christmas. That made some of us, myself included, a tad grumpy. It just messed up our inner calendars and played tricks with our senses of logic. But a good point was made today: starting the observance of Christmas in all its fullness a week early will, I know, I am confident, give me all the time I need to meditate upon the truth of it, to be thankful for the greatness of it, to revel in the love of Christ, family and friends, and to absorb the Spirit of it. Quite logical, after all.