happy christmas

i don’t say merry too much because of my upstate new york accent- apparently, according to my husband, it comes out sounding like ‘mary’- so rather than get picked on- i circumvent i gave up the belief that this is a celebration of a divine baby years ago- but i know that many out there believe it wholeheartedly- so i am declaring a moratorium today (for myself) on negative christian references. this time of year has changed so much for me over my lifetime that it’s hard to imagine sometimes- but this year has been one of reflection for me- and many others it seems- so it seems right somehow to reminisce. i think that part of the whole magic of the season for me- was santa claus. not just for the gifts- i mean what kid doesn’t fantasize about having any gift they ask for?- but the whole story. a great big elf man in a red suit who is magic. when i lived in florida, he came by helicoptor and when we moved back north with snow- it was a sleigh and reindeer. neat. and- hey- he knew if i had hit my sister in the head again or if she had bitten me on the arm and left marks- but he also knew that we had pulled it together in time for cmas- and been good for what seemed like foreeeevver!!!

then, there was the whole divine birth thing with the wise men and angels and beautiful music in church. church was always decorated and the angels were so beautiful and happy- and there was always lots of food. what a great time of year to look forward to. when you are a kid, you don’t worry about world peace or folks who are going hungry or kids who may not get any toys. when you are a grown up- you don’t have that luxury anymore and the season loses some of its lustre. sure, we still try to recapture that old magic- but it remains elusive. what we have to learn is- we can have a different kind of feeling and still love the reason behind the season- peace and goodwill to all. happy cmas everyone.

Eddy Arnold - Will Santa Come To Shanty Town lyrics

(Eddy Arnold - Steve Nelson - Ed Nelson)

Will Santy come to Shanty town
To a poor little boy like me?
Will he bring me some toys
Like the other girls and boys?

Will Santy come to Shanty town
If he sees our Christmas tree?
Mommy said he would
If I promised to be good.

for we don’t have a fireplace
Or a chimney on our shack
Like the other lucky children have
Who lived across the track.

Now if I say my prayers each day
When Christmas rolls around
Will Santy come to Shanty town?

— Instrumental —

He didn’t stop last Christmas Eve
Doesn’t he know we live here?
Will my mommy have to paint my toys
The way she did last year?

now if I say my prayers each day
When Christmas rolls around
Will Santy come to Shanty town…?