"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"

I haven't blogged, for me at least, in a while.  There are a few reasons.  One, since Thanksgiving, other than a movie review or two, I've been taking a break.  I've also taken a step back and have watched very little news, occasionally only checking the occasional wild meme or seeing who posts the Daily Currant, The Onion, or some other satire site as real news.  I've stayed away from the political sites and the incessant talk on the "War on Christmas" and "Obamacare."

 Instead, I've been watching reruns of The Supernatural, Bones and Castle.  I've been watching things like Rudolf the Red Nose Reindeer, A Christmas Carol, and Holiday Inn. 

Oh sure, I've followed with only amused interest Phil Robertson and the controversy even taking time to actually read the interview he is in trouble for.  My opinion, he is an old Southern white male raised in the Deep South in the pre-civil rights era, and I am not at all surprised by his attitude, which in the interview goes far beyond quoting the Bible. He is exercising his first amendment right, something those of you announcing we should never say "Happy Holidays" may want to remember.  A&E is exercising its corporate rights as well. No one said freedom of speech is without consequences. Finally, in regards to all the memes invoking Miley Cyrus in the same breath as Phil, Miley has nothing to do with it. She has no show to be suspended from and no good reputation to redeem. It is much ado about nothing and like Honey Booboo bound to end badly.


And you know what? The world has not ended.

No, instead, since the lighting of my Christmas tree and decorations, I've been remembering a time that may have never actually existed, but it is nice to think it did.  I am remembering a time when we didn't know so much about the people on TV nor did we want to.  I am remembering a time when the Grinch had his heart enlarged while the voice of Tony the Tiger sang "You're a mean one, Mr. Grinch" and Boris Karloff narrated the story, and that was a good thing. I am remembering a time when Charlie Brown hung a single ornament on a sickly tree as Linus quoted from the New Testament Luke.  I am remembering a time when people read O. Henry's story "The Gift of the Magi" and a gruff newspaper man named Francis Pharcellus Church wrote the immortal lines "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus."

Is it all a bit Pollyanna? Perhaps.  Sometime in the next couple of days, I will watch George C. Scott in A Christmas Carol and It's a Wonderful Life. On Christmas Eve, I will have dinner with my family, go to the Candle Light Service and spend a few moments alone at home videoing this year's Christmas decorations. After the service, I will sit with my wife and various family members and watch, as we have for the past several years, White Christmas.  On Christmas morning, we will gather and open gifts, and I will miss not having small children who we must stuff back in bed at 4 AM because Santa has arrived.

So, here it is. No matter what celebration you follow at this time of year, I hope that you too have some special  memories and moments you share and remember.  I hope you "have yourself a merry little Christmas."