“Mirror, mirror on the wall…”
Christmas. Usually, whenever that word is mentioned, people think about gifts, parties, some expensive decor, flashy lights and all of those somewhat show-off stuff, that some people use to somehow declare their social status to others. Seriously, do they really think Christmas is just one party for the A-class members of our society?
Dave Barry once said in “Christmas Shopping: A Survivor’s Guide” that “people passing each other on the streets would say ‘Merry Christmas,’ but now, lately, it’s just ‘Look out for the wall!’” mainly because—yes, you guessed it—they have strong hangovers. Nowadays, Christmas—mostly for the youth—is all about parties, the presents you either give or receive and the way you dress-up. It seems that they think that when it comes to the Yuletide Season, “the flashier, the better.”
“Christmas is not a time nor a season, but a state of mind. To cherish peace and goodwill, and plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas.” A well-said quotation by Calvin Coolidge. Peace, goodwill and mercy. Seems these are some of the positive attitudes our society is beginning to accept when it comes to the Holidays. But are those really it? Are we not forgetting something?
Oren Arnold once quoted that “the perfect Christmas gift suggestions are: to your enemy, forgiveness. To an opponent, tolerance. To a customer, great service. To everyone, charity. To every child, a good example. And—finally—to yourself, respect.” It seems the guy was right. How many people know about this quote based on their Christmas attitude? It seems the answer would be so low, that it won’t be worth calculating any longer.
The negative things people do this Yuletide season are just plain mean. They treat their enemies with the “my-house-decor-definitely-looks-a-lot-prettier-than-yours” attitude. They are prepared to go to the extremes just to prove their family has much more money than the ones they are in a quarrel with. Showing-off, is that the right attitude to have during one of the holiest seasons of the year?
And, how do you expect an adult set a good example to a child when he himself stays awake till who-knows-what-time just by drinking with friends? That will just cause kids to think that whenever Christmas arrives, you should be out with your best buds, busy drowning your livers with liquor at bars. Now, who would ever think that would be such an awful example to the next generation of our country? Obviously, everyone who can still think straight.
How can you even start to respect yourself if you aren’t even sure if the bed you woke up in this morning is either located at your own house, the house of your friend, or the property of someone whose name you can still remember—due to constant bar-hopping you and your pals did the other night after your endless Christmas partying?
Are these kinds of things really the kind of Christmas celebrations we should be encouraging? I mean, we should be encouraging the youth to participate in meaningful activities like those charitable events you often hear about—but still go unnoticed due to the people’s too-busy-shopping-schedule.
Thank God some people are still familiar with the “must-have-Christmas-attitudes” up till today. It seems peace and love are the most famous amongst these attitudes. Wait, aren’t they forgetting something?
Of course, love and peace are good “choices,” and we all know those two will never vanish. Even in some “minor-league” beauty pageants, whenever the judges ask “what do you wish for?” or some other question like that, the contestants automatically answer—just like it was programmed in their brains—that they would ask for world peace.
But, in my point of view, one must first reflect—not only to oneself—about everything. Why? ‘Cause, you need to know all the positive and negative things you’ve done within the past year. Not only that, but you should also count—not the problems you’ve received—the blessings you got. This is the time to ask for reconciliation and thank God for everything there is in your life.
“When we were children, we were thankful to Santa Clause and our parents who filled our stockings at Christmas. But, why are we not grateful to God for filling the stockings we wear with legs?” – G.K. Chesterton.
Why do we notice the flashy things? Instead of the important ones—the little things in life you know you can’t go a day living without. Why are we thankful for the new Apple Mac laptop you’ve just received, or the new Porsche your parents gave you, instead of being ever-so-thankful for the fact that you still woke up this morning, or that you were born without any diseases? Do you ever think about the people who can’t even afford to eat the things you just snob at your dining table?
Not everyone can experience the luxuries you have the privilege of enjoying everyday. When you’re walking down the street, the beggar at the corner could have been starving for 2 days now because he can’t afford the cheapest kind of street food, while you just threw away your Big Mac because you didn’t want it anymore. Or the desperate saleslady you yelled at the mall while you were shopping like there’s no tomorrow could be the only bread winner of her family.
Not everyone is like you. So reflect on all your blessings and attitude and do whatever it takes to change the negative ones you might tend to notice. This is what Christmas really should be like.
“I am not alone at all, I thought. I was never alone at all. And that, of course, is the message of Christmas. We are never alone. Not when the night is darkest, the wind coldest, the word seemingly most indifferent. For this is still the time God chooses…and is with us” – Taylor Caldwell
Hi. I know this is a bit—okay, it is really—off-season and very late to be posted, but bear with me. This is still also for a friend of mine, Chloe. I’ve mentioned her on my previous post, by the way. This was a Christmas essay I did way back when I was still a high school freshman. I apologize for any errors I’ve made in this article, especially the misspellings, grammatical errors, misquoted quotes, syntax errors, so on and so forth. If in case you do notice such mistakes, please do feel free to tell me about the corrections you’d like to make in order to help me improve my article and also my writing. For comments and suggestions, please do feel free to leave me a message. Please and thank you. :)
