What Vs. Who
I fondly remember ‘proper’ family Christmases from when I was younger. If you’re in your 40s like me, some of this might resonate with you!
I remember shiny foil garlands, blu-tacked from the corner of every ceiling into the light in the middle. I remember scraps of tinsel draped across the top of every picture frame, mirror and clock in the entire house. I remember having just one advent calendar, shared between the six of us, me my parents and my 3 sisters. They weren’t chocolate filled in the 80s either so it was usually a picture of either a bell, a star or a sheep. I remember getting action figures for presents; He-Man and Battle Cat the earliest, Ghostbusters a few years later and then Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles. (The word Ninja was replaced with Hero back then – thanks BBC!) I remember my first drum kit when I was 12 or 13 – bought second-hand from my sister’s then boyfriend’s band. I remember eating until I felt ill on Christmas day, watching the Queen’s speech and then eating some more before playing cards and board games late into the night. Good times!
All of those memories tend to centre around the ‘what’ of Christmas, as they do for many young people. Every year, I’m aware how many of the children I work with seem more eager to tell me how much their Christmas presents cost, rather than what they actually are. As I’ve grown older though, my Christmas seems to focus more and more on the ‘who’ of Christmas. Who should I make sure I buy a special gift for? Who is around our table on Christmas day? Who do I need to catch-up with that I haven’t spoken to for a while? Our family, like many of yours I’m sure, has felt the sting of grief and loss this year so we’ll also be asking ‘Who are we missing?’ That’s a painful question to ask at any time, but especially at Christmas.
Another ‘who’ that I consider more and more at this time of year is the person of Jesus Christ. We’ll see the image of him as a new-born baby on greetings cards, television and nativity plays throughout this season. Organized religion may make mistakes sometimes but Jesus didn’t and that’s what makes him so appealing to me and millions of other Christians around the world who will be celebrating his birth. God with skin on, God in human form, God incarnate. I find that amazing and I, like those millions of other Christians, will celebrate his birth and also look to his life as an example of how to live our own.
Whether you have a Christian faith, another faith or no faith, this season is an opportunity to hopefully focus more on the ‘who’ rather than the ‘what,’ to be grateful for the people in your life more than the ‘stuff.’ If you’ll allow me to wrap up (no pun intended) by quoting Bill Murray’s famous end-of-film monologue from Scrooged, my prayer will be that “we all act a little nicer; we smile a little easier, and we cheer a little more.”
I wish you and your loved ones and Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!