This photo is from last year when C's song was "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth". "Santa" is HO HO WHO?Soon we'll be leaving for a week or so in Florida to visit S's folk. The temp's forecast seems to be upper 70's down there - a nice, warm, pleasant break. Wish it were just SLIGHTLY colder here now, then we'd have some snow. We've been having low clouds with some light precip and cold weather but it's just not quite cold enough for that white stuff.
We finished up with school on Wednesday and C's been enjoying the total break from schoolwork. I managed to get in some Xmas shopping on Monday and Thursday mornings while S worked from home and kept C occupied. It was quite the zoo in town, especially on Thursday. Here in the States though, it's not the same zoo as in South Africa where we all used to wait until the very last week to do all the shopping - let me tell you, THAT is a zoo of momentous proportions - one you all need to experience ha ha!! Actually quite fun, in it's own crazy way.
Well, here is my philosophy of Xmas. I don't even want to say Christmas because to me it seems sacriligious. The whole holiday is mostly just a commercially driven enterprise. To really celebrate Christmas we should all be giving necessary items to the poor and needy and not even buying "gifts" for everyone we know (who don't need anything). OK, call me a grinch but there IS no "reason for the season". You can't MAKE it all about Christ coming as a babe AND do all the gifting to ourselves - the two don't go together. Have ONE OR THE OTHER. So I say, let's have a winter solstice or whatever "festival", and then celebrate Christ's birth in the fall or late summer (more realistic - shepherds outside watching sheep? - NOT winter!)and use that time to help our less fortunate 'brothers and sisters'. A festival of sacrificial giving to those who really need it - following the example of Christ who lived a life of complete humility and self-sacrifice. Tell me now - those still "listening" - how big would the celebration of Christ's birth be THEN? Probably as big as Yom Kippur! As Christ Himself said "You cannot serve both God and mammon" (money). You know what? I'm just as truly talking to my own materialistic self here! This is MY sermon for the day!
Anyway, after all that ranting, I do believe a LOT of good and benevolence is done in the name of Christmas and that this cold winter time is the time to do it. The fact is, without Christ coming into this world in the first place, we'd be doomed. Christ being born was a GOOD thing - "Christmas" is not! (Just my HUMBLE opinion!:-))
The winter festival can be the one where we do good deeds for the needy - even just spending time with a lonely elderly person. The festival needs to be at least a month long (I know longer wouldn't work!). Now for those in the Southern Hemispere - hmmm - I'll have to ponder a while on that one!...Uh, - A winter festival in July or August? :-)
It's hard to stop when it's ranting time....I could say more but will spare you the pain. It's very hard to argue with the bottom line - $$.
May you all have a blessed and happy Xmas - with folk who enjoy your company, ha ha.
Have a quiet and blessed Sabbath too - a rest from all the madness! What a blessing it is.
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