SENIOR PONDERINGS
Christmas
‘Tis the
Season By Cindy Argiento
It’s the time of year when Christmas decorations
are displayed in store windows,
Christmas music is being played, and our
thoughts turn to Christmas.
Families bake cookies together, decorate Christmas trees,
and travel to be with loved ones for the holidays. Parents
stay up to the wee hours of the night putting together a
“some assembly required” gift, just to see the sheer joy on
their child’s face in the morning.
When I was a child I loved Christmas and everything
about it. I loved the trips to Radio City Music Hall and
then Rockefeller Center to see the Christmas tree.
Christmas music didn’t play in my house until Santa
Claus made his debut at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day
Parade. Christmas cookies were baked Christmas Eve
and practically devoured by the end of Christmas Day.
Like most children, my favorite holiday was Christmas.
I have found that as we get older, Christmas comes to
have a different meaning. You no longer have the excited
anticipation of waiting to watch your favorite show.
Today with DVDs, you can watch your holiday favorite
show whenever you like. You can watch “The Grinch”
starting in October and every week until Christmas.
After all, ‘tis the season!
October now is usually the time of year department
stores begin to display their Christmas decorations.
Christmas decorations go up before the Halloween decorations
come down. After all, ‘tis the season!
Hoping for a profitable season, stores slash prices, open
their doors early or stay open 24 hours a day. People line
up outside store doors and storm through once they
open. People get trampled and fight with the person who
cuts in front of them in line. Every year there is a new,
must-have toy that should be under every child’s tree to
make their Christmas truly merry. Parking spaces are
argued over, because, hey, ‘tis the season!
People do many things to ensure themselves of a festive
holiday season. Everyone wants the picture-perfect
family Christmas we see in movies. We strive to achieve
the Norman Rockwell image. So, we decorate trees and
houses, bake cookies and send out cards. We listen to
music and attend holiday parties – even the ones we
really don’t want to. We shop for and wrap presents. We
exchange gifts and hope the person who has everything
likes theirs. We sit down to a big family dinner and eat
too much. After all, ‘tis the season!
The day after we stop the music, throw away scraps of
wrapping paper and toss the tree to the curb. Some of us
stand in line to return or exchange gifts, to buy Christmas
cards or paper for next year. After all, ‘tis the season!
Christmas is for children and we all want to guarantee
ours a happy one. It’s only fitting that
Christmas started with a child, a child born to Mary
and Joseph.
After all, 'tis the reason for the season.
Cindy Argiento is a freelance writer. She is a public speaker for
her book “Deal With Life's Stress With 'A Little Humor.'“ To
contact her or to book her for your next event, go to cargiento@
aol.com
12 FOR SENIORS ONLY!