Where Have All The Wise Men Gone? Jesus Is Not Acceptable For Christmas!
July 3, 2008
It’s CHRISTmas!
Where are the wise men?
WOW - The wise men are MISSING! What kind of Christmas is this anyway?
Are you caught up in the “season” with this Christmas thing? Do YOU know where the wise men are?
For over 200 years we have celebrated Christmas and all of the joys and festivities that go with the “holidays” in this great country of ours. Christmas was declared a federal holiday in 1870 by President Ulysses S. Grant for the purpose of celebrating the “philosophy of good will toward men.” What’s changed?
And, where are those wise men?
The Associated Press reported last Christmas that in New Jersey the sixth-grade class of the South Orange Middle School planned a field trip to see the play, “A Christmas Carol.” However, due to pressure from some of the parents the field trip was “re-routed” to a show, “The Great Railroad Race”!
Why? Because of the concerns from parents that the play, “A Christmas Carol” might have something to do with CHRISTMAS! The school principal told the AP, “There is a great sensitivity to putting students in awkward situations.”
Jesus is just not acceptable! Nice…
The Christmas Dress
June 29, 2008
From the time I was a very little girl, I had always loved to watch my big sister, Loretta, when she was sewing. So, one Sunday afternoon while she worked on the red velveteen jumper that was going to be my Christmas outfit, I didn’t want to miss a single thing.
Because it was Sunday and Loretta did not have to go to work at the electric company, she was dressed casually in a white sweater and a pair of periwinkle blue slacks that matched her eyes. Loretta was an assistant bookkeeper at the electric cooperative that supplied electricity to our farm and to many of the rural areas in our county. I could still smell the perfume that she had worn when we went to church that morning. The bottle said it was called Lily of the Valley.
As Loretta spread the fabric on the kitchen table, I stood as close to her as possible, practically breathing down her neck.
When you live on a farm and the next-door neighbors are elderly and no other neighbors live on your mile-long stretch of road with children for you play with, and in fact, no other children live within several miles, what else is there to do on a Sunday afternoon in December except pester your big sister?
Dear Santa: Christmas Sucks!
June 27, 2008
Christmas time is finally here, and most people during this holiday are happier than a fat kid eating a Krispy Kreme donut. Christmas brings so many great things to the table; the caroling, the NO SCHOOL, the snowmen and hour long snowball fights that ends with bloody noses, the eggnog and drunken relatives, the presents, holiday parties, and the drinking hot coco next to a roaring fire while cuddling up with your loved one. How could anybody not love this great holiday! It’s a hiatus from the dark sadness of reality and a time where you can be ridiculously happy! But maybe too happy?
In a recent poll, over 45 percent said that they dreaded the holiday altogether. Not everyone seems to see the light that Christmas brings, and if you look harder into the eyes of this joyous holiday, you may see why. More people kill themselves around Christmas time than any other time of year. "Well," Khayeni Sanders, a fellow Christmas lover states, "I think you should make a club, or a house, for those people. It’s like an equivalent of a homeless shelter! Wait, what’s the question again?"
Spend More Time With Your Family This Holiday Season: Host A Caroling Party
June 23, 2008
Too often we forgo entertaining because of the mere thought of all of the preparation that is involved. And more is not better. Often we try to out do each other with lavish parties and expensive gifts. Stop and remember for a second what was important from your own childhood. Was it an outing? Baking cookies with your grandmother? Building a snowman with your dad? We need to connect. This doesn’t require more time, just shifting the focus of the time we already have. Here, a casual party and a very simple activity were the catalyst that brought everyone together.
To get the entire neighborhood into the Christmas spirit we planned a caroling party.
The day before our guests arrived, my kids and I spent an afternoon making decorative candleholders to give to each caroler, to light the way for our caroling expedition.
Dad, dressed as Santa, provided our very own photo opportunity. Little ones whispered their Christmas list in Santa’s ear. Grown ups, as well as kids, had their pictures taken in Santa’s lap.
Adults, kids, and even a few dogs then joined us on our merry way. Our numbers grew as we made our way caroling through the neighborhood.
New Year?s Resolution ? Why Not Resolve To Take Back Your Life?
June 21, 2008
It’s time once again for the dreaded New Year’s Resolutions. Most of us make them; few of us keep them for more than a few months. New Year’s resolutions range anywhere from loosing weight to being more organized to finishing your education and the list goes on. But, have you ever thought about resolving to get your life back? "What does this mean?" you ask.
Getting your life back means taking control of your life-Making deliberate choices about how you spend your time, so that you can have a balanced lifestyle. If you often feel stressed or hurried, this may be a good sign that you need some help with managing your lifestyle. A balanced lifestyle means having the time to choose doing the things you enjoy, rather than the things that you have to do! You may want your family and friends time to come before the errands and the cooking and the business project and the driving, but you just don’t know how to balance it all. If so, here are some tips that are easy to stick to and will help you get your life back.
Thats the Christmas Spirit
June 18, 2008
Last Christmas, Uncle Albert promised his neighbor, Wilson, to find a way to keep the Christmas spirit alive all year. You know, just like Wilson and everybody else wishes people each year.
Yesterday I was checking my calendar. “Holy smokes! It’s almost Christmas. I better check to see if Uncle Albert found a way to keep the Christmas spirit alive all year.”
So I put on my boots and buttoned up my jacket. I dashed out the door.
I came back into the house to put on a scarf. And some gloves. And a hat. And my long-johns. I filled up the thermos with hot chocolate and dug out a pair of ear muffs. “Yup. That’s the Christmas spirit,” I thought as I headed out once more, trying to keep my head above the snow.
When I reached Uncle Albert’s, I could tell something was different. I wasn’t sure quite what, but I suspect it had something to do with the large red and gold sleigh parked in his driveway.
“Say, Uncle Albert. What’s with the sleigh?”
“You like it, Happy Guy? That’s part of my Christmas spirit,” he enthused.
“It is?”
Wolves, Goats, Martyrs and War: a History of Valentines Day
June 13, 2008
Valentines Day is one of the most enigmatic of holidays, having appeared in many forms. But all "Valentine’s Days" have drawn suspicion. In fact, after hundreds of years of attempted reform, Christian observance came to an end when the Catholic Church purged St. Valentine’s Day from its calendar in 1969.
Still, the holiday continues to inspire an annual avalanche of cards, not to mention the mass consumption of chocolates, flowers and sometimes, pricier presents. What do we commemorate when we celebrate Valentine’s Day?
- Running with the Wolves
If you’ve ever researched the history of Valentines Day, you know it began with wolves and ancient Spring magic. The earliest instance we know of starts with the tough old shepherds and founders of Rome who feared and respected the wolves that preyed on their flocks. Once a year, they held sacrifices to Lupercus, the god of shepherds, enemy of wolves, and friend of dogs. Other shepherds sacrificed to Faunus, who also protected shepherds but was part goat.
The celebration, called Lupercalia, was held during early spring, which since time immemorial has been a season for purification. All the ancients saw that in the winter, the earth fell quiet and covered itself in white. Late winter and early spring was the time for human purification also, to be followed closely by fertility magic.
Lost and Found (A Valentines Day Story)
June 10, 2008
I casually glanced down at my hand, but instead of a wedding ring and an engagement ring, there was only the narrow gold band.
“Randy!” I yelped. “My engagement ring is gone.”
It was Valentine’s Day, and my husband, Randy, and I were on our way from my niece’s wedding, which had taken place in one town, to the reception, which was being held in another city about fifteen miles away.
If there hadn’t been other cars behind us, I think my husband might have been tempted to slam on the brakes.
Of course, one of the things I have always admired about Randy is his ability to remain unruffled during a crisis. Like that time one winter when the landlord had arranged for contractors to build a sloped roof over the flat roof of a house we were renting, and the next thing you know, the snow trapped between the two roofs started melting, and then gallons of water began dripping into the house and THEN the ceiling caved in?
Valentines Day ? Where Did THAT Come From?
June 8, 2008
Just as soon as the stores put away their Christmas merchandise, out comes the Valentine’s Day items - even though Valentine’s is still more than six weeks away.
I don’t know why, but it always takes me by surprise to see Valentine’s Day merchandise so soon after Christmas.
I’ve always wondered where Valentine’s Day came from, and under those circumstances, a person could be forgiven for thinking it was invented to create more business when Christmas is over.
But no, after a little research, I discovered that Valentine’s is not a holiday that was "invented" by greeting card companies to sell more greeting cards or by candy companies to sell more candy or by florists to sell more roses.
Valentine’s Day actually started more than 1,500 years ago.
According to legend, Valentine was a priest who defied the orders of the Roman emperor Claudius and continued to perform marriages. It seems that Claudius realized no young men wanted to join his army because they didn’t want to leave their wives and sweethearts. When it was discovered that Valentine was still performing marriages in secret, he was sentenced to death. Valentine allegedly cured the jailer’s daughter of blindness, and on the night before his execution, sent a note to her signed "from your Valentine." He reportedly died on Feb. 14, 269 A.D.
Valentines Day! The Sweet and Romantic Holiday
June 5, 2008
When I think of Valentines Day I think of Chocolates and Flowers. Others might think of a more romantic subject too. What ever it means to you it should be made fun and can offer another reason to think of giving someone special a gift during this holiday.
There are many ways to shop for valentine gift ideas. Some options you might think of are to browse through the catalogs we all receive in the mail to get ideas, go out shopping at the stores and wait in lines, or kick back with a cup of coffee or cup of Mocha and browse online. Doesn’t the 3rd option sound the best? I have found shopping online to be so much easier to do and did much of my shopping during the holidays this way.
Some businesses offer free shipping or free with orders over a certain amount. Even if you have to pay shipping, it is a small price to pay for the convenience of shopping from home. Unless you like traffic and crowds, it’s the best option. I have found this to be a much less stress free option for my life style. If you have not tried online shopping already, you should think of doing so, you won’t be sorry.
