Yeah, I’m not all PC and hope I don’t disturb your senses with wishing Christmas happiness. It is after all that day all over the world. True there are folks of other religions, or no religion, that don’t recognize the celebration of the birth of the Christian mangod, but the wish of happiness on this day doesn’t mean any less to me than any other day. I wish you all the happiness the other 364 days of the year as well.

Although I was raised in a fundamentalist preachers home it didn’t rub off on me. I am not a Christian and don’t really celebrate this holiday but I remember the Peace On Earth, Goodwill Toward Men creedo and try to have a good time during the holiday season. The days are getting longer now and the new year is only a week away. New starts come around this time of year and with the passing of the winter solstice the light shines bright for the future.

I do have a big problem with what the celebration of this holiday season has become though. Overly commercialized with a spend, spend, spend sense of obligation pushed on us by the teevee ads and pressure they bring, the goodwill part of the season has all but disappeared. Greedy consumerism has replaced the kindness of this seasons roots. The kids all expect a gaudy show of product under the dead tree opulently placed in front of the picture window of a home thats about to be foreclosed on because of credit card bills from the over spending to be better than the neighbors. There is no more peace on earth, just gimmee more.

The traditional gift giving is based on some ancient custom and that’s not bad. Customs and tradition should be observed. The trend now though, is to see how much gift giving, and receiving, can a person do. This year the presents are bountiful and next year the kids will expect more. The bills for this Christmas will be almost paid off in some cases and the expectations will cost even more next year. Spoiling the kids will make the “me first” attitude hide the peace and goodwill that should be the message of the season.

I guess I’m a bit old fashioned in this season but I don’t apologize. It is a celebration of Christs birth. Jesus taught harmony and neighborliness so without giving to those with less the holiday has lost it’s meaning. If the kids have a lot and then get more there isn’t a lot left for those less fortunate. Greed has overcome the sense of sharing and thats not a good thing. Jesus would spin in his grave if he knew how folks were celebrating his birth.

I was somewhat happy to see the downturn of spending this year. The increased fuel prices have caused everyone to spend less on product and more on gas. A year with gas prices hovering around the three dollar a gallon price has affected every aspect of our lives. Fuel prices have made the cost of production and shipping go up. The consumer has absorbed these costs and spending for unnecessary items went way down. After all everyone needs the money for gas to get to work next year so they can attempt to repeat the cycle next December.

Maybe the tight belts and reduced time at the mall gave some folks time to reflect on the real reason for the season. PEACE ON EARTH, GOODWILL TOWARD ALL.

Stumble it!