(This is the final installment of my Christmas Day Medley. This was from Christmas 2005. Merry Christmas!)

The Presence of Presents

I’ve always felt funny about Christmas gifts. I like them but feel guilty when I get a gift during someone else’s birthday. I almost let my guilt make me do something stupid this Christmas season.

I like gifts but this year I told my wife, Lisa that I didn’t want any gifts. I said I’d rather she just make a donation to the local animal shelter. It seemed strange that we both had to agonize over a Christmas gift list when neither one of us really lacked for anything. The focus of Christmas should be the birth of Jesus and nothing more. My wife eventually gave up hope for a few gifts under the tree and even threw away her gift list for us. I later realized that while my focus on Christmas was good my tactics were shortsighted and poorly executed. The wise men bore the first Christmas gifts and so started a tradition as old as Christmas. The traditions developed are the familiar glue that draw and bind us together through shared memories. A Christmas gift to for my wife was an excellent way to remind her that I love her and cherish her love for me. I almost derailed this nice little tradition and shame on me for it. In the end we decided to give gifts to each other and include those who have nothing. Lisa and I will gift each other but the humane society is going to get something too. Another man-made crisis avoided.

I thought this episode was done but I recently read a story that made gift giving between people make even more sense. “The Gift of the Magi” is a fictional story written by O Henry about Della and James Dillingham Young, a young English couple down on their luck but very in love. Neither Della nor James has enough money to buy the other a gift but Della sells her beautiful hair to buy James a fob for his pocket watch. James so loves Della that while she is selling her hair he is selling that treasured watch so he can purchase combs for Della’s beautiful hair. When James brings Della’s present home he is dumfounded by her lack of hair but wraps her in his arms when she explains her hair was traded for his Christmas present. Della’s hair will grow back and she loves the new combs James brought for her and she gives her gift to him. He loves the new fob for the watch that he has already traded for his gift to Della. They both fall back on the couch and laugh, first at the irony of the situation and second in astonishment of how they love each other. Love so strong that they happily give up the things they cherish for the one they cherish. Just as God gave up the son he cherished for the children he cherished.

There is no greater emotion than love and there is never a time when the world loves better than at Christmas. There is never a better time to give the ones we love a reminder of that love than at Christmas. That is why at our home there will now and forever be the presence of presents.

(part three in my Christmas Day medley. This is from Christmas day 2008)

Christmas Gift

I get inspiration when I work. No activity is more inspiring than
working
quietly with cattle; no tractor, no engine noises-just a pitchfork
and me. I like to sing, hum or whistle while I work and my recent
play list is mostly Christmas music. One of those poorly-sung songs
really made me “choke-up” and made me think this week.

There are many reasons for tears during Christmas. I have seen some
of the worst behavior among families during this time of year. We all
expect to be close with loved ones during the holidays so those who
seek to hurt family members often see an opportunity. Families,
already split by divorce, sometimes suffer even more as mom and dad
use visitation with the children they have in common as a weapon
against each other.

Most people also aspire for peace on earth during Christmas. I think
this may be the reason why violence hurts most folks so deeply during
Christmas.
I really feel for those who have family and friends at
war or who have recently been touched by tragedy which makes peace
difficult to achieve. It seems we have more sadness than in past
years.

All of these scenarios are good reason for tears, but they are not my
reason. I’d rather tear up from a good gift.

My reason has more to do with the song, “Hark, the Herald Angels
Sing.” I was singing it to myself while I fed cattle. The line that
makes me choke up is “born that man no more may die.” Most of us feel
invincible when we are young; however knowledge
of our own impending death eventually finds a place in our young
minds. I don’t
believe there’s ever a time when my own impending death (by old age,
really old age!) is very far away from my thoughts. It’s not something
that I even consciously think about, but it’s there almost always.

The good news is that while there is always physical death, there is
spiritual immortality. That’s why the line, “born that man no more
may die” gets to me. I think every one of us has the nagging thought
that one day we will pass. But when we are reminded that we will not
die but have everlasting life it is such a relief that it’s met with
a rush of emotions-even tears.

Here’s the thing about Christmas, it is the celebration of the birth
of Jesus. God gave us everything we need to live right from the
beginning,
but decided that it wasn’t enough. He sent
his son to absorb our sins and remind us of an everlasting life. It
is a gift, we do not earn it. It is the gift of relief from fear of
death and impetus for us to do our best on earth in preparation for
the next life.

It funny what you learn working with cattle. Actually it’s really a
relief what you come to understand working with cattle. Life is
everlasting, especially at Christmas. Now go open your gifts!

(part two in my Christmas Day medley. This one is from Christmas 2006. I hope you are enjoying “a Christmas Story” on TBS today.   Grant)

The Merry Christmas War

Christmas is a time for love and family.  Unfortunately, some people will spend this Christmas at war.  There is the war in Iraq but there’s also a war at home, I call it the “Merry Christmas War” and it’s waged each time somone uses this greeting at Christmas. 

American soldiers fight and die for freedom, independence and peace.  The War of Merry Christmas has seen no casualties but it’s motives are just as well-defined;it is a War for our right to freedom of religion.  Those who seek to make us forget the meaning of Christmas claim they seek separation of church and state.  The truth is that what they really seek is to separate the faithful from their faith.  “Merry Christmas” has been replaced by “Happy Holidays” allegedly to be more inclusive of other religions’ holidays.  This is a simple lever used to remove the reason for the holiday.  Those who say ”Merry Christmas”, “Happy Hannukah” or any other Holiday salutation derived from religion offend no one except those who wish to be worshiped themselves in their own kingdom.  We all have belief in a higher being and in most cases it’s the same entity only a different name.   It doesn’t divide us but rather unites us.

So why have forces gathered to take away Christmas?  Belief in a higher being grants people the courage to hold beliefs above government, powerful corporations or other groups.  When I pledge my allegiance, it’s to God before any other.  If that sort of faith can be diluted then it can be replaced with faith to a government or to concepts that compromise our morals.  Look at what the USSR did by dismantling formal religion and replacing it with allegiance to a communist government.   Many in present day North Korea worship a delusional Kim Jong Il.  It is the only way a government that fails to serve it’s people can exist.   They must remove the one person who really deserves worship so they can become the only alternative.

I accept the secular traditions of Christmas happily.  Santa Claus, Christmas trees, Frosty the Snowman, wreaths are fine traditions and bind us together through memories we all share.   My eye sees these traditions as simple events during Christmas.  A visit from Santa is like playing touch football after a Christmas meal.   Trimming the Christmas tree is like early morning presents with everyone in pajamas.  These precious shared memories bring us all closer together but they are not Christmas.   Christmas is the birth of Jesus-everything else is just simple human ways of celebrating that birth.  I think we just need to be careful that Christmas is the reason for the celebration and not vice versa. 

So why “The Merry Christmas War?”  This term may seem a little extreme but every time I greet someone with “Merry Christmas”  it reminds them of what we celebrate.    I think it helps to keep the phrase alive until it once again takes hold.   When I wish you a Merry Christmas I celebrate the brith of Jesus while I make my stand for what I believe.   Merry Christmas!

I thought I would do a medley of some of my Christmas columns from the past few years today. I hope you enjoy them. I will post more throughout the day. Grant

Christmas on my Mind

 I want to indulge myself in a little Christmas nostalgia this week.
These are some of the Christmas memories that I want to share with
you. 

Whenever I think of Christmas, I think about milking cows. Any
activity on a dairy farm starts with milking cows; that includes
weddings, funerals and Christmas. The haymow of the barn was always
full of straw and hay bales which made excellent insulation for what
was basically the barn’s  attic. Combine this superior insulation with
36 warm cows and the barn was a pleasant place to be when it was
cold. The milk house was attached at one side and the calves lived in
a lean-too on the east. The cows would have received fresh bedding at
noon and a pile of leftover straw remained at one end of the
barn dotted with cats awaiting a twice-daily feeding of milk
replacer. Before my dad and older brothers came in for the Christmas
big meal, all the cattle were fed and ready for a pleasant nights
sleep. It was easy to feel that all was well on Christmas when you
grew up with a barn like the one at our farm.

The Christmas Eve meal began well before December 24th. My mom made
lefse, kolache and cookies prior to the big day. She received help
from Grandma Z (Zavoral) sometimes and from my sister Debbie. Kolache
is a Czech pastry which is filled with raisins and prune. I love
Kolache and as a child would eat them until I had to almost live in
the bathroom. Mom made so much food for Christmas Eve that the table
looked like a diorama of a small city. I sat repulsed as my dad and
Grandpa Z ate lutefisk which had been drowned in lye and resurrected
in butter. There was not one space left over at our table; I don’t
believe anyone ever ate anything-we just passed plates in one
continuous, lock-step serpentine pattern. It was easy to feel all was
well at Christmas when you celebrated at our house.

We had to wait to open presents until the dishes were washed. Then
dessert was served and coffee drank. It was torture. I had spent the
previous three weeks living under the Christmas tree. I would
estimate the size of each present then match it with items from the
catalog which I had petitioned for since the wish book arrived that
fall. I loved lying under the tree. It too was like a whole
wonderful, fantastic culture of Christmas celebration. There was a
faux, stained glass nativity scene which mom and I had painted
together. Multiple decorations made by my siblings and several sets
of lights. Some of the icicles were hung properly-one at time and
straight and then there were the icicles which had been applied by me.
Our dog, Benji and I spent many hours under that tree awaiting
Christmas. It was easy to feel all was under the Christmas tree.

Midnight Christmas Eve services were a little late in the evening for
my taste but still pretty neat. Pastor Ralph Hofrenning delivered the
message in a deep, booming voice that left little doubt as to the
reason for this gathering. I enjoyed the Christmas music because most
were old standards and I knew all the lyrics. The end of the service
started with a darkened church as one lit candle passed the flame to
the next. As the last candle received light, the service ended.
Sitting there, crammed shoulder to shoulder in a church pew, it was
easy to feel all was well.

I know things seem a little bleak this year. World economic problems
dominate the news and cloud what should be a joyous season.
Things will get better and remember that while the world may be
different, Christmas is still the same. During the holiday season,
it is much easier to feel-all is well.