- Too dark. It’s not just waking up and going to bed in the dark. Where I live, it also means going to work in the dark and coming home in the same. And that’s coming from someone who’s officially retired.
- Too cold. Where I live, we’re just not used to it yet.
- Too many shoppers. That means long lines at the cash register everywhere.
- And all that shopper traffic. Parking lots are full. Traffic lights are backed up.
- Everybody’s snarly. Can’t blame them. So am I.
- Santa Claus ditties. They’re coming out of ceilings everywhere. They have nothing to do with the birth of the Christ Child.
- Lying to innocent children. These presents don’t come from a fat man in a red suit, for starters. He doesn’t come down a chimney anywhere in the world. And telling them all this blarmy undermines their trust in anything else we tell them, especially about Jesus.
- Guilt, paralysis, and panic. For guys, especially, this hits hard about three days before the big event, when we still haven’t figured out what to get anyone.
- Everything else stops. Do I really need to explain this?
- It’s all about the Holiday Season. Or more accurately, holiday shopping. Let’s be honest and admit that what’s happening has very little to do with what should be happening.
That resonates, especially #7. Thirty years ago I wrote a newspaper column on why my kids were told from the outset that Santa Claus is a myth. My prime motivation was trust. I wanted them to know that when Dad told them something that seemed impossible, it really was true. If I lied to them about Santa, how could I expect them to believe me when I told them about Easter and Christ’s resurrection?
Yes!