Have you ever tried to rank your Christmas as a movie? Maybe you could try to rank your Christmas as a “National Lampoon Christmas Vacation” or an “Elf” Christmas? Maybe you had a “Christmas Story” Christmas? Or maybe it was more of a “Scrooged” Christmas? Now, before everyone wants to rank their 2020 Christmas as “The Nightmare Before Christmas” lets take a look at what it really looks like.
There is no secret that 2020 has been one hell of a buzz kill. And a lot of the things and traditions we do as South Dakotan’s have disappeared this year. Very few Christmas parties. No town appreciation days. No sitting on Santa’s lap. Where are the Christmas bake sales? Only online Christmas concerts? Sharing a drink with a friend you only see once a year? With the way things are working out, a lot of people won’t be seeing their families for Christmas. Which means a lot of people may be by themselves for Christmas. A lot of people may be missing their families. Some of them could be wishing for a cousin Eddy moment.
But what’s interesting about those same movies we all watch, is that so many of those movies had their elements of 2020 in them. How about “When The Grinch Stole Christmas”. The town woke up and everything Christmas was gone. But Christmas still came. Or maybe in “Home Alone”. Kevin was by himself for Christmas. When all Kevin wanted was his family. And it would be very easy to be very depressed like in the movie “It’s A Wonderful Life”.
It would be easy to write off 2020 as a bust. And there is no doubt there are very good reasons to do so. But all of these Christmas movies have something in common. At the end, they all taught a valuable lesson and made people realize what was really important. Maybe 2020 is suppose to do just that?
When you break it down. We’ve been forced to keep away from our families. We’ve been lead to believe that the world is coming to an end if something political doesn’t happen. People cutting ties to others if they don’t believe the same as them. We’ve had people without jobs. And people without money. We’ve had talks of hoax’s and being woke. We’ve had drought and fire. We’ve had nothing but negativity shoved down our throats from all directions through most of 2020.
At the end of the day though, is any of that worth it? I mean, is any of that important? What would those wonderful Christmas movies we watch say? Just maybe this is a case of life imitating art. Maybe it’s time to learn the lesson. Just as they do in the movies. Have you ever wondered in an age where we are so connected, we seem so far apart? And have you wondered as I do, why instead of people using these tools to reach out to one another, they use them to tear each other apart? We could reach out to our neighbor and wish them a “Merry Christmas”. We could say hi to our families. You could say hi to people you haven’t seen in a long time. We all know that those devices are not just great for watching cat videos.
Here are some quotes from some of these movies. See how many you recognize? And see if they maybe relate.
“It’s the Christmas star. And that’s all that matters tonight. Not bonuses or gifts or turkeys or trees. See kids, it means something different to everybody. Now I know what it means to me.” Chevy Chase/Clark Griswold “Christmas Vacation”
“At one time, most of my friends could hear the bell. But as years passed, it fell silent for all of them. Even Sarah found, one Christmas, that she could no longer hear it’s sweet sound. Though I have grown old, the bell still rings for me. As it does for all who truly believe.” Narrator/ Tom Hanks “Polar Express”
Charlie Brown Isn’t there anyone who knows what Christmas is all about?
Linus Van Pelt Sure, Charlie Brown, I can tell you what Christmas is all about. Lights, please.
“And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them, and they were afraid. And the angel said unto them, ‘Fear not,
for behold, I bring unto you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the City of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you. Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God, and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. That’s what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown.” “Charlie Brown Christmas“
“Deep down, you’ll always love them. But you can forget that you love them, and you can hurt them and they can hurt you, and that’s not just because you’re young.” Old Man Marley “Home Alone”
“Strange, isn’t it? Each man’s life touches so many other lives. And when he isn’t around he leaves an awful hole, doesn’t he?”
“Remember, no man is a failure who has friends.”
Clarence/Henry Travers “It’s A Wonderful Life”
I’m not crazy. It’s Christmas Eve. It’s the one night of the year when we all act a little nicer, we smile a little easier, we cheer a little more. For a couple of hours out of the whole year, we are the people that we always hoped we would be. It’s a miracle. It’s really a sort of a miracle because it happens every Christmas Eve. And if you waste that miracle, you’re going to burn for it. I know what I’m talking about. You have to to do something. You have to take a chance. You do have to get involved. There are people that are having trouble making make their miracle happen. There are people that don’t have enough to eat. There are people that are cold. You can go out and say hello to these people. You can take an old blanket out of the closet and say, “Here.” You can make them a sandwich and say, “Oh by the way, here.” I get it now. And if you give, then it can happen. Then the miracle can happen to you. It’s not just the poor and the hungry. It’s everybody who has got to have this miracle. And it can happen tonight for all of you. If you believe in this spirit thing, the miracle will happen, and then you’ll want it to happen again tomorrow. You won’t be one of these bastards who says, “Christmas is once a year, and it’s a fraud.” It’s not. It can happen every day. You’ve just got to want that feeling. And if you like it and you want it, you’ll get greedy for it. You’ll want it every day of your life, and it can happen to you. I believe in it now. I believe it’s going to happen to me now. I’m ready for it. And it’s great. It’s a good feeling. It’s really better than I’ve felt in a long time. I’m ready.
Have a Merry Christmas everybody. Bill Murry/Frank Cross “Scrooged”
“God bless us everyone.” Tiny Tim “A Christmas Carol”
Our state looks very different this year. But that doesn’t mean we can’t still reach out and be there for one another. South Dakotan’s are strong and very resilient. And we all can’t wait until we get back to the things that are familiar. So lets make this a Christmas to remember for the right reasons.
From me, to all of you and all of yours. Have a Merry Christmas.
Until next time.