Down here behind the Zion Curtain, Christmas is a season, not a day. There are trees all over Temple Square, there are garlands and lights all over Main Street, and every lamppost now wears a "Happy Holidays" banner.
Christmas is, by far, the best of all pagan-turned-Christian-turned-secular holidays. Sure, those Jesus lovers think it's still a religious holiday, but let's be honest here, people. It's all about the lights, and the shiny things, and the trees, and the food, and the presents.
There's just something happy about Christmas. It's a break from reality. For (in SLC's case, a month) a few days, we all drop everything we're doing, eat food we otherwise avoid, and drink far too much alcohol. We throw snowballs, watch cheesy Christmas movies, and make fires in fireplaces.
And I just love it that it lasts for a month here. This means that even if it is freezing cold, and there is a foot of snow, there are also Christmas lights up, and there is at least one happy thing. Even if this city is run by insane, sexist Sprite-Drinkers, at least we have one thing in common. We both love those little colored lights. Even if we can't agree on funding education, or even making discrimination based on sexual orientation, at least we have those ridiculous garlands with this red velvet bows. For a lot of people, Christmas is stressful- they worry about their weight, or their relatives, or paying for everything. Maybe for some, those decorations are annoying, or maybe even insulting.
But let me tell you about Christmas in Portland. They are politically correct, and they don't do very much decorating. That is depressing. It's not because they aren't acknowledging the holiday or anything, it's just that, at least for me, blinking lights and tinsel and decorated trees are a reminder that we can't take ourselves too seriously. Yes, the economy sucks. Yes, it is cold, and dark, and the inversions are only going to pick up speed. Yes, the political situation is dire, as is global warming, and same with our war in the Middle East. But hey, there are also garlands. And strands of dried fruit. And little blue and green lights wrapped around hedges. It might seem like we're in a hole right now, and that everything is going to shit, but those lights remind me that we're going to be just fine. The decorations aren't about Christmas, not really. We could have just as good of decorations for any other holiday. They're supposed to represent joy, and a pause in our "grim reality." They aren't all dedicated to Christ, they're there to make you smile.
So thank God for that.
No comments:
Post a Comment