Penny Thoughts: Is Christmas Really Ever Over?

One of the more annoying elements of Christmas which began to creep over me as I approached my adolescent years was the fact that it all had to come to an end – usually just after all the presents had been opened. There is no other holiday or life enhancing event, which is so imbued with anticipation coupled by a healthy dose of anxiety other than Christmas Morning.

The anxiety in youngsters is usually tied to wishes for specific presents. And today’s economy along with contemporary parental guilt if their child does not have the most current or most popular toy has produced a most peculiar phenomenon – children more freely associate Christmas with gift receiving than anything else.

Even given the jokes about “some assembly required” and “the Christmas tie”, adults can muster enough psychic cohesiveness to rebound after a minimum of seven weeks of mind-numbing advertisements on television, radio, and in the print media.

The cabal of advertisers has zeroed in on this one, particular holiday to unleash a constant barrage of messages telling us just what our mate needs, our parents need, our “significant other” needs, what we need, and, for God’s sake let’s not forget this message, what the kids need! And it all needs to be opened on Christmas Day! Why? Because we all get presents on Christmas day!

The advertising gang can blame it on the Wise Men, but if those Three Sages with such an affinity for wisdom had only known the nature of the logical derivation of their gracious acknowledgements of the birth of a King, they might have re-thought their entire venture. (But I doubt it!)

It seems today’s “wise men” have realized that since giving gifts was a very fundamental part of the First Nativity, then it only stands to reason that the root motivation for Christmas themes like “Peace on Earth” is giving gifts. After all, it was through this birth that God gave the world His only begotten Son, and that Son would be the greatest sacrifice ever known to the world, either before or after.

So, after we clean up the wrapping paper, settle the youngsters with their favorite new presents and sit back and enjoy the Christmas feast, what then? Do we ponder the fate of the world and our place in it as a result of our recently celebrated religious holiday? Or do we just take it all for granted as we loosen our collective belts to let our feastly indulgence begin to digest? Or is there a middle ground?

Being a Libertarian politically, I believe that there is a middle ground, and it begins with a reflection on the true meaning of Christmas. OK. I know we hear this constantly at church and being the True Believers we are we press on throughout the year celebrating the Spirit of Christmas.

It’s too easy to just say that. And it is far more difficult to do it, given the humanistic secularism, which lurks around every corner today. But that is just what it is. It is an extension of “Ockham’s Razor” – so named by 14th century philosopher William of Ockham who stated that the simplest conclusion to any problem is usually the most correct one. Hence, I reference Ole William to point out the simplicity of applying Christmas throughout the year.

Let us suppose for the moment that there had been no Magi who visited the Christ child; that the only gift that Christmas was the gift God gave to save the human condition. Where would our tradition of receiving gifts have evolved?

If we look at it from that perspective, it seems as though the entire essence of Christmas would have emerged as a different hybrid of feast. It might even be that in this approach we actually begin to sense the real “light” of Christmas.

I love Christmas. I love giving my friends and family all I can give them, and hopefully more of what they need than what they want. But if I work on it conscientiously, then I know that a new Spirit of Christmas can emerge from my faith. And as Christ’s birth was designed to be humble, so must an approach to the Spirit of Christmas be humble.

It is to those who would pursue the True Spirit of Christmas that the great burden may be made lighter by the Almighty. Of course, taking away candy canes and sugarplums does little to enhance the Spirit of Christmas, and this is where children first learn of the spirit of gift giving

So in that greater sense of seeking wisdom through the evolution of our spiritual developments, it seems only logical that while Christmas Day and the seven weeks that precede it build to a crescendo of euphoric proportions in children, perhaps those of us who are still cleaning up wrapping paper and drying dishes Christmas evening can find in ourselves a more permanent meaning for Christmas – one that allows the Spirit of Christmas to flourish every day of the year.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the policy or position of The West Alabama Watchman.