On Christmas

A few words about Christmas.

I've always been somewhat of a grinch around the holidays.  And that's because i dont think Christmasy things are about The Baby.  I think they're about feeling good.  And it has always felt like a facade.

But..... maybe that's okay. It is something that provokes feelings of hope when things look bleak.   They're not false... they just don't line up with reality.  Like hope.  Hope isn't false, it just doesn't always line up with what IS.   Guess that's why it's hope.

I agree, the lights and tinsel and red & green color themes do absolutely nothing to change things.  They just make us feel good for a minute during the year.  They don't have anything to do with The Baby.  But they allow us to imagine a world where all is well.

Like this video clip. Starting around 2:30. It's from one of my favorite shows, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, written by Aaron Sorkin.  This is the culmination of a subplot of this episode that aired after Hurricane Katrina, where the producer of the show gave musicians from New Orleans the chance to play on their show so that they weren't out of work.  What happens is, musically, one of the most beautiful things I've ever heard.  In the midst of chaos, they created a few minutes of BEAUTY.  And for those few minutes, all is well.  And they make me feel like maybe possibly perhaps somehow someday, all will be well.

So for the next week or so, I hope you have lots of good feelings that leave you with a lasting hope.