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CTC Readers' Poll:
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"For many years I too felt
the holiday letdown. It seemed like there should be so much more
to Christmas, but when the day came -- nothing. Finally I decided
to do some research on Christmas discovered some amazing facts!
First the Bible is completely silent on celebrating Christ's
birthday. Unlike Old Testament celebrations which were commanded
by God, (and later fulfilled by Christ) the New Testament doesn't
even give us the time of Christ's birthday, let alone any idea of
celebrating this day. The Puritans outlawed the celebration of
Christmas as a pagan holiday noting it's Roman roots in the pagan
holiday of Saturnalia for the winter solstice where people gave
gifts, partied, used lights etc. In the 1800s in New England
shopkeepers where reminded by their wholesalers not to forget to
put out Christmas decorations as people were tending to buy more
'stuff' as they caught on to the idea giving and getting; perhaps
the getting was the more exciting? It really is the materialistic
drive that is the bottom of modern Christmas celebrations, and
once we realized that our family decided to go an entirely
different direction. We have a nice family dinner on Christmas
Eve. Our kids all come home and have a lot of fun just being with
each other. On Christmas Day often we will visit our in-laws, or
just spend a quiet day at home. I must admit that we do a 'Secret
Santa' gift exchange, partly so our younger children don't feel
left out when all their friends get presents, but it really is a
minor part of the days off. We don't really decorate, don't bother
with a Christmas tree, and since we have realized that the
Christmas is not a Christian day ordained by God but a man made
holiday, we have been much happier. And guess what? No
depression!" ~ Bernie
"One year, when money was tight and we wanted to focus more on the real meaning of Christmas, we didn’t do gifts. Instead, we Christmas shopped the day after, when everything was half-priced. When we were all finished shopping, we met at a restaurant and did a gift exchange then. It was probably one of our favorite Christmases!" ~ Jeff "Fortunately for us we have been given the answer by our own family and our extended families. Counting everyone, we have a total of 10 birthdays in January, so it seems like the festivities just keep going! However, I do understand this question and it really has affected me in my life because I am one of those people who really goes above and beyond to prepare for things so they are 'just right'. Then when I don't get the reaction I want from it, I find myself feeling miserable for the next few days. To combat this, especially for Christmas time, my husband and I (we've been married for 5 years and have 3 small children) have already decided what 'traditions' we are going to have and which ones we will skip (leaving room of course for creating new ones as our children get older). With that in mind we are able to focus on the things that really matter: family, Jesus, and being together. Those three things are something that we are already focused on during the rest of the year as well so we never feel like these activities are over. The themes just change during the year." ~ Katherine
"When you say, 'There is
nothing left to celebrate,' that is not true. If people feel that
way, they really don't have the spirit of Christmas. What they do
have is the hype and commercialism of the buying season. As most
people will say, 'It's not about gifts and food, etc.,' for all the
talking, it boils down to exactly that. Most of us try to have the
right reasons for celebrating Christmas but when all is said and
done we still don't truly have it in our heart." ~ J.L.R.
"To
avoid a holiday let-down, we like to spread the holiday out as
much as possible. I like the ideas from Amy Allen Clark’s
article about the Christmas Jar. This can help make the whole
month of December exciting, and it puts emphasis on taking time
to enjoy activities with your family instead of getting all
caught up in the holiday shopping, wrapping, cooking, and so on
that culminates and is over in one day. I also
spread out our visits a bit and never plan any extravagant
dinner. We have a holiday celebration with all the in-laws and
cousins a week ahead of time – usually a light brunch where
everyone contributes. We see my father’s side of the family on
Christmas Eve (usually for lunch in a restaurant). For
Christmas, we spend a few days with my mother’s side of the
family – again, everyone contributes to meals. Finally, on New
Year’s Eve (rather than spending a lot of money to go out
somewhere fancy and battle drunk drivers), we gather in our
friends for an informal get-together. Parents bring children on
the early side. Other friends come after the kids our in bed and
help me stay up past midnight! There is always room for people
to stay over rather than driving that night.
"Letdown? Absolutely not!
I LOVE January! There are NO expectations, NO excess busyness,
etc. It's a welcome refreshing month! I use it to clean and
organize. As you pack things away, sort out Christmas
decorations and reduce! New gifts to put away? Clear out
and give away the things you no longer use. January! New year, fresh
start! I'm always looking forward to it. Use it to
regroup and reflect. It's a wonderful time to be thankful and
take a needed breath! And if you need Christmas to linger a
bit longer, go ahead and play those carols as you clean."
~ Nina
Editor's Note: Thanks to all these readers who took time to write! |
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