Six Christmas Questions to Ponder…

Christmas day went by in a flash.   When I was a child in Kentucky the days and weeks leading up to the holiday felt like an eternity of waiting.  Christmas day, too, seemed longer with more time to relax and talk and eat.  And during the days before New Year’s Eve there was ample time to remember and reflect.  Maybe this perception is simply part of looking at Christmas through the eyes of a child.  My adult eyes, however, have been registering one big blur at times and I feel like I’m running on a treadmill stuck in the ON position. 

So, let’s reflect for a bit…

1)  If you could somehow “jump into” any Christmas carol or song and actually experience what the lyrics say, which song would you choose? 

I would go “dashing through the snow in a one-horse open sleigh…”  I’ve carried that image in my head since childhood.

2)  What would be the ideal way for you to spend Christmas Eve?

I like the “traditional” way we spend it, but perhaps a little less hectic during the day.  Christmas Eve candlelight service at church, lighting the luminaries at dusk, a relaxing dinner, opening gifts, and either watching the Muppets’ Christmas Carol or National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. 

3)  What aspect of preparing for Christmas do you like the most?

I like decorating the tree and watching my son set up the North Pole village.  We’ve spent years collecting ornaments from hither and yon and they always bring back fun memories.  Likewise, the “village” began as one elf bunkhouse and there are stories to go along with each one we added.

4)  If you were to open up a cozy little Christmas shop, what Christmas product would be your main draw?

Ornaments, for me.  I would try to collect them from all over the world.  Handmade, simple, and a reflection of the culture of the folks who created them.

5)  If you were creating a movie about toys coming to life, which toy would be your main character?

A monkey.  One of my favorite stuffed animals was Mugsy the monkey who went through life carrying a half-peeled plastic banana.  I love stuffed animals, so I guess mine would have to be a show about Christmas in the jungle.

6)  If you could somehow give one of the following intangible gifts to every person living in the world, which one would you choose — hope, joy, love, or peace?Hmmm.  I suppose it would have to be love since, with enough love, all the others could be had as well.

What about YOUR choices?? 

**These questions come from The Christmas Conversation Piece: Creative Questions to Illuminate the Holidays by Bret Nicholaus and Paul Lowrie.  The book was on my coffee table at Christmas, but we are a talkative group and didn’t need conversation starters.  Sometimes we could, however, use a few appropriate conversation enders…:)

 

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