A
Christmas tune plays on the radio and the words draw me back to another time
and place. I can almost taste Mom’s sugar cookies, with crushed peppermint
candy sprinkled over the top, fresh from the oven. I can still see the blue color-coordinated decorations and lights twinkling on my aunt’s white tree—I’m sure that’s why blue
gives me so much pleasure to this day. And I can recall the joy of trying to guess what might be in a certain package.
For
me it happens with “Silent Night” and blue lights and snow. Maybe
everyone has a special place they travel back to when the fragrances are just
right, when the sounds pull you in, or maybe, all it takes is seeing a child grinning
from ear to ear, wishing for Christmas Eve to hurry up and get here, and
suddenly, you remember . . .
And
for a few moments you get caught away.
Can
you see yourself as a child? For those of us with children, it’s easy to
remember the times when they were little. But what about you? What makes you
reminisce to a time in your youth when life was simple and fun and filled with
anticipation over Christmas? When the joy of looking forward to Christmas morning—or
Eve—consumed you. Not just about the gifts, although there was that. But, also,
to hearing the Christmas story. To reliving the journey of the wisemen and
angelic visitation to the shepherds. To the awe of the moment when the lights
on the tree were first turned on in the dark. To lying on the floor and staring
up at the glowing colors and tree decorations as if you’d never seen them
before. Tasting candies you were only allowed to have at Christmastime. Hearing
laughter in the house. Family. Presents. Candles. Twinkling stars. Watching.
Waiting.
Close
your eyes for a moment. Don’t think too hard. Just relax and smell the
evergreen scents, hear the soft Christmas melodies playing, the jingling of a
bell, packages being shaken and felt. Does a little anticipation race up your
spine? When you were a kid, did you lay awake in bed trying to go to sleep on
Christmas Eve, but you couldn’t? Did you think . . . Christmas is tomorrow? It’s coming. Somehow, I’ve got to go to sleep so
I can wake up and then it will be . . .
!!!!!
Remember?
Oh, let yourself feel. Think of the happiness. The laughter. Did you count down
the twelve days before Christmas? Maybe, the twelve days before that? Then, before you knew it, tomorrow—the one perfect
day of the year when dreams might come true—was almost here. Did you get so
happy you felt like dancing? Or maybe you were wishing for a hula hoop to twirl
in, and those thoughts were prancing in your mind. Or a doll. Or a new book. Did
you hope for a Tonka truck or a new bow and arrow? Could you imagine yourself
in buckskins like Davy Crockett?
In
our busy adult world, with jobs and bills and responsibilities and stress and
pain, sometimes we forget to love Christmas like we did as a kid. To see and
smell and touch the beauty and traditions of celebrating Jesus’s birthday. When
you closed your eyes a moment ago, what did you
see? Did you remember something special?
I
recall how one year, I shook a beautiful red-wrapped present, listening for any
sound that might give away the contents. Was that briefest of clatters the
sound of a miniature washing machine? Oh, I hoped so! I couldn't wait for
morning to come so I could find out if my mom had gotten me the thing I longed
for—a toy machine to wash all my doll clothes. Can you imagine a seven-year-old
wanting that? Ha! After a lifetime of washing clothes, I wonder, what in the world
was I thinking? Why would I want such a gift? But I did.
Another
year, when I was older, we got a long wooden toboggan as a family gift. We
spent days and days sliding down the hills in Ketchikan, Alaska. One time, a
bunch of snow fell in the middle of the night, and one of my brothers woke me
up, and the three of us and our cousins bundled up and went outside and played
in the snow, building all kinds of sculptures—before it could melt away.
Oh,
the treasures and memories we have inside of us. Have you thought of your
childhood Christmases lately? What smells take you back to those carefree days?
Cinnamon rolls? Fudge? Hot chocolate cooking on the stove?
“Silent
Night” brings back warm feelings for me, because my mom and I used to sing that
song while we washed dishes. It was the first song where I learned to hold the
melody while someone else harmonized. Each time I hear the song, I remember
her.
Of
course, we can’t live in the past. We have the privilege of making new memories
this year, and in the coming year. But, every now and then, it’s a blessing to
go back and remember the special times we experienced in our youth. These
memories are part of our story in the book of our lives.
We’re
supposed to become like a child in faith. That brings to mind the verse . . . “Unless
you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of
heaven.” (Mt. 18:3) To me, that means being free and joy-filled and full of anticipation
in what God can do. A child sees the moment and enjoys it. He’s open and full
of belief. His joy hasn’t been diminished by disappointment. Nothing holds a
child back from expressing happiness over the smallest things. A child who is belly-laughing
isn’t a bit concerned over how he looks or sounds or who might care. In that
moment, he’s absolutely free. And it’s beautiful. I love hearing a child’s
laughter. It’s contagious and makes me laugh too.
We
get caught up in too many “serious” things in this life. I know, there are
plenty of serious things to consider. But, let’s take a few minutes and remember
what it’s like to see Christmas through the eyes of a child. Let’s remember.
Starting with Jesus. Loving those around you. Taking it all in. Truly feeling
again.
A
child really can lead us. In fact, He already did.
Merry Christmas!!
