Saturday, December 10, 2005

"You remind me of my son"

I was doing a stint as a Salvation Army bellringer this morning. I've never volunteered to do that before. I was stationed outside our local Wal-Mart store. I was surprised at the high percentage of people who give something. Very few people put in more than a couple of dollars, but I'm guessing at least 80 percent of the people who came by this morning gave something. I was encouraged.

One man's gift particularly stood out. He came up by the side of the bucket. I didn't see him until just before he put in his gift. He said to me, "You remind me of my son." I could tell by his voice and in his eyes that it was a melancholy memory. I wish I knew the story.

It reminded me that the Christmas season is not a merry one for everybody. Many people face the first holiday season after the death of a loved one. Others, like myself, are really stressed out by the commercial expectations of Christmas. They want to give for their family, but don't have a lot of spending cash to do so. So they risk disappointing their loved ones or heavy post-Christmas debt. And sometimes Christmas is just too damn busy--sucking whatever joy one might have right out of the season by overcommitment and fatigue.

Take a deep breath, everyone. Slow the pace down and savor the true Spirit of Christmas. Do less. Spend less. Give more . . . your best gift is probably totally free and completely valuable and precious . . . YOU. Give YOU a little more this year. You might be surprised at how special and valued that gift is!

Monday, December 05, 2005

A rational opinion on faith in the public arena

Michael Medved has an excellent op/ed piece in USA Today entitled "Faith in Film: Why not?" He's examining the controversy over the release of the film based on C. S. Lewis' The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. Medved, an observant Jew, notes that a devout Christian family's celebration of Christmas in no way threatens his faith or observance of Hanukkah. Nor is a Christian family threatened or somehow weakened when it
" . . . watches its neighbors joyously, meticulously celebrating Hanukkah--or Ramadan or Kwanzaa, for that matter . . . . In fact, confronting other religious practices may help raise substantive questions about the deeper meaning of the holiday, beyond Santa and sleigh bells."

Read the article in it entirety. I think Medved has it right. We who celebrate Christmas in an overt way pose no threat to the deeply held faith of others. We are contributing to "the kindly, soulfoul seasonal atmosphere that encourages all people to take their traditions and commitments more seriously."