Finding the Magic in the Holidays

For some it gets harder and harder to find simple pleasure and joy in the holidays. It takes some concentrated determination to find the merry in "merry Christmas" or the happy in “happy holidays.” Starting far too early and long before Thanksgiving, we are bombarded with holiday marketing. You can’t escape someone trying to sell you something. It’s a red and green jungle out there. We never used to think of Christmas shopping as dangerous, but Black Friday has created a dynamic that is terrifying.

So, once again, we are challenged to find the good in the holidays and push back the bad. The race is on to try and manage all the demands of holiday giving. Who should be on the list and how much to spend? How to find the perfect gift? In a tough economy we have to find a way to be thoughtful but not break our Santa bank.

The Big Guy is like most men. Christmas shopping is for women and any shopping he does is last minute, but always thoughtful. We do the annual let’s agree to “not” (buy each other a gift). Sounds good. Never happens. Both know we care too much to take away the magic of a gift to each other Christmas morning. After all, we were married at Christmastime!

Christmas is about children. If we are not lucky enough to be close to our children and grandchildren, we must work a little harder to find some holiday joy. I find it with my Jazzercize group, book club and special friends. We celebrate a year of friendship and things we share and love, whether dancing to music or reading the latest bestseller.

In 1843 Charles Dickens created the Scrooge character who set the bar in the bah humbug department. Dickens’ classic story, "A Christmas Carol," still makes us stop and think about what is really important at this time of year. In Scrooge’s case, it took ghosts to shake him out of his self-absorbed and lonely life. We must fight any holiday negativity and find the child who could hardly wait for Christmas Day.

So, how do you find the magic? Spend time with a child. Jump in the car and go on a Christmas light tour. Volunteer to help make a Christmas for someone less fortunate. Ring a bell for the Salvation Army. Watch a television Christmas classic: “It’s A Wonderful Life,” or “A Charlie Brown Christmas.” One of our favorites is “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.” It always leaves us laughing as the Griswold family gets ready for Christmas. Find a Christmas carol service even if you don’t go to church. Bake something, even if you never bake, and give it to someone. Put lights on something in your yard. Wear red.

There is holiday spirit in all of us, and we may just have to work a little harder to find it.