The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

The Christmas Season is undoubtedly, undisputedly, unquestionably, and undeniably my favorite time of the year – and that statement is uncontested, unqualified, unwavering, and unassailable. For the follower of Christ, the simple fact that we get to celebrate the unspeakable Gift of the greatest Giver of them all should fill our hearts with overflowing joy all year round. What could be better than God sending His only Son to earth to pay for our sins so that we could be His children and righteous in His sight? There’s no other gift possible on this earth that can match that. And without that Gift, all earthly celebrations lose their meaning.
Christmas has been my favorite time of year for as long as I can remember. Of course, for a small child the main draw of Christmas is that he or she gets to open a huge pile of presents on Christmas morning – and all other matters yuletide are but a mere sideshow. However, as we get older, we learn to appreciate all of the great things that make up Christmas; and the more we appreciate those things, the more the presents become the sideshow. Let me take you on a tour of the things that make Christmas so special.
I love Christmas music. There is no other kind of music that is so unique and so seasonal. In fact, it is so unique and seasonal that if we catch someone playing it in July we tend to suspect that something is the matter with their mental condition. For many years, my sister and I have been under the influence of the firm belief that the holiday season officially starts the night of Thanksgiving. On that night of nights, many stations begin to play Christmas music around the clock, and we have often tuned in to catch the first strains. It may not surprise you that the author is listening to Christmas music as he types.
Who doesn’t like the great carols – “Silent Night”, “O Holy Night”, “We Three Kings”, “O Come All Ye Faithful”, “What Child is This”, among so many, many others? Then there are the songs like “Deck the Halls”, “Jingle Bells”, and “We Wish You a Merry Christmas”. Of course, there are the modern ballads that we swear, if the radio station plays them ONE more time, we will physically throw the radio out into the cold yard. You know the ones of which I speak – “White Christmas”, “Winter Wonderland”, “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year”, “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas”, “Silver Bells”, “Frosty the Snowman”, “Jingle Bell Rock”, “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree”, “Here Comes Santa Claus”, “Blue Christmas”, “Feliz Navidad” and (how could we forget) “Happy Christmas (War is Over)”? And we all know that it’s the gentle influence of the Season that keeps us from carrying out our threat, because, deep in our hearts, we really like those songs (just in moderation).
One of my fond early childhood memories comes from when I was in first grade and first learned about the story behind the carol “Silent Night”. For days I was humming the song around the house (I had a bad habit of humming many things around the house); it lent a certain added Christmasy air to the season.
Speaking of being a child, I, like all of you, once believed in Santa Claus.* I even sat on his lap at the mall once, but being a shy kid, I was not enthusiastic about making it a regular occurrence. Of course, my sharp, inquiring mind detected a few inconsistencies in the story along the way. The biggest of these was that only once in my life has our family ever lived in a house with a chimney (and that for only about half a year). How was Santa going to get in if we had no chimney? Was he going to just come in the door? However, the cookies I left on the table always kept getting eaten, and the presents always came on Christmas Eve night, so I kept my questioning to a minimum. As I am sure you do, I still remember where I was and what I was doing when I first heard that there was no Santa Claus. Dad sat me down, looked me straight in the eye, and broke the shocking news. You could have knocked me down with a feather. Why, you could have told me that President Reagan’s naturally brown hair was really a dye job and not have shocked me more. But I took it in stride. Dad’s only request was that I not tell my sister about the awful truth. To this day, I am not sure if she and Father have had that little talk yet.
I also love Christmas specials and movies. In my book, you’re never too old to watch Charlie Brown and Frosty and Rudolph specials. Our family’s holiday favorites are “White Christmas” and “It’s a Wonderful Life”. In fact, I have probably memorized every scene and line George Bailey and his friends ever acted out or uttered. These kinds of movies aren’t great for their plot (and I’m not even the type that re-watch movies as a rule) or even for their actors (although Jimmy Stewart is one of my favorites). They’re simply a part of an American Christmas.
Christmas is a time for traditions, and since I am a man of traditions, I have plenty of Christmas traditions. This is the third year that I will have listened to old-time radio show episodes with Christmas themes every night through the month of December. I like to enjoy hot chocolate on cold nights during the season. I love to join family members on treks to the busy stores for a little Christmas shopping. I love when Mom makes her famous Christmas cookies. And I try every year to read Charles Dickens’ incomparable Christmas classic, “A Christmas Carol” (as well as watch any movie versions that may come on).
We used to put up a fake Christmas tree every year, and I used to love to look at the lights and the ornaments. However, we ended this tradition for various reasons and have not resumed it. Of course, this was a big disappointment that I still deal with. It didn’t help that one year we put a few ornaments on the fig tree that we brought inside for the winter. That just wasn’t the same. However, we still have a small ceramic Christmas tree made by my great-grandmother, and we are going to put it up this year for the first time in a very long time. I am determined, when I have a home of my own, I will put up a Christmas tree every single year, with all of the good Christmas cheer that is within me!
When I was small, I had a handful of Christmas books that I got out every year. There was one about Rudolph (I also had a stuffed Rudolph that played Christmas music), one about the Grinch, and one with the long poem “The Night Before Christmas”. But my very favorite was one about Santa. What held my interest about the book was its rich illustrations. I still fondly remember the colorful, realistic pictures of the elves and the North Pole. In fact, I still wish I had that book.
You may notice that I haven’t said much about presents. Of course, I like these as much as anybody else. I find it amusing (in a very depressing sort of way) to compare the mountains of presents I had when I was about seven or eight to the few packages I get when I’m 25. But the older I get, the more I realize that Christmas is not about materialism or getting “stuff”. It’s more about the family, the friends, the giving, the memories, and the spirit and meaning of the entire season. I have found that the Christmases when I have been engaged in special giving – for example, in caroling at a nursing home, passing out gospel tracts in the neighborhood, or visiting someone in the hospital – have been some of the most meaningful Christmases.
You may get the feeling that I can be a sentimental person, especially when it comes to Christmas time. Well, I am, and I won’t deny it. I love getting into the spirit of the season. I love the lights and the atmosphere in the stores and the neighborhoods. I love the giving (and yes, even the receiving). I love thinking of God’s love toward us and of what is supposed to be our love toward our fellow man – all of which Christmas is supposed to remind us of.
In fact, I love all of these things so much that I actually have had nightmares that the Christmas season passed and I was unaware of it! And every year I worry that I haven’t celebrated the season enough. The truth is, however, that some of our greatest Christmas feelings and memories are only made after the fact, in retrospect. This Christmas isn’t supposed to be like last Christmas or the one in 1998 or 1987. You can’t force great Christmases, and you’re not supposed to. All you can do is enjoy each one and appreciate it as the unique blessing from God that it is.
I can happily say that this Christmas, at least so far, I am quite firmly in the spirit. In fact, I have more than once remarked that I remind myself of Dickens’ Ghost of Christmas Present, spreading his Christmas jollity by way of his torch on every person he sees. And so, I sprinkle some of my torch on you right now, dear reader, and wish you the merriest of Christmas seasons!

*Author’s Note: If you still believe in Santa Claus, I urge you – calmly, yet sincerely – to stop reading this blog entry – now. Trust me, it is for your own good.