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Dec 4, 2006 - christmas, understanding    Comments Off on losing the magic in the 21st Century…

losing the magic in the 21st Century…

Remember the magic of Christmas as a child? I do.

Before I went to bed we would put out a mince pie and a glass of wine for Santa, and sometimes even a carrot for the reindeer. I would be so excited I could barely sleep, and maybe only slept for a few hours, sometimes with considerable bribery from mum and dad.

Christmas morning was magical. It may not have been a white Christmas, but the presents under the tree affirmed my faith that there really was a Santa Claus, and that I was special enough for him to visit. There were always things that remained the same, year on year. Always an orange in my Stocking, the glass of wine would be drunk, only crumbs remaining of the mince pie.

For many years Christmas was a day of fun. Playing with toys, building Lego, eating Christmas dinner, watching all those old movies that are on year after year. Christmas was a time of family, a time of fun, and a time of magic.

And what has Christmas become?

The Christmas season begins earlier and earlier each year. Barely are the ‘back to school’ goods off the shelves, then the Christmas trees and musical Santa’s are there to taunt us at every turn. It is not uncommon to see Witches broomsticks alongside Snowmen. Towns turn their Christmas lights on as early as November.

This is not because there is a desire to extend the magic, or for any other sentimental reason. Christmas has become a retail enterprise. It begins earlier only so that the unsuspecting consumer spends more. Parents who cannot afford the long build up to Christmas are made to feel guilty that they cannot provide what little Johnny wants and all his friends are going to get.

Santa is no longer cool. His credibility is lost at a much younger age than in Christmas past. Where Children as old as ten used to still believe, the loss of innocence happens during the early years of Primary Education. Children would rather be in the real world it would seem. The guise of Santa is simply flaunted as another way for the retail industry to make money.

The Nativity story is barely known. Children are as likely to learn about Hanukkah as any other festival. (Now don’t get me wrong, I’m all for teaching other religions, but the traditionalist in me believes that at Christmas the story of Christmas should be taught.)

So if the story is lost, the meaning is lost. And we have a generation of children growing up believing that the true purpose of Christmas is material gain. Not magic, not family, not much of anything really.

So if the magic is gone. What now?

I’ll admit I’m struggling with Christmas this year. I really am. I have yet to write cards. I have bought only essential gifts. And as you can see, I have become more than a little cynical about the whole thing.

There isn’t anything I can do to change the way the world is approaching Christmas. I think maybe I need to rediscover the meaning of Christmas. I know I can never go back to the magic of my childhood Christmases, but perhaps there is a way to make my own magic now.

We’ll see.