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Letters From North America
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For questions or comments, please contact me at pperry@austin.rr.com Designed and Hosted by The Home Page Factory |
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Letters From North America
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For questions or comments, please contact me at pperry@austin.rr.com Designed and Hosted by The Home Page Factory |
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Anyone who has been around me for any time at all knows that I am the original Scrooge at this time of the year. The term “Bah, Humbug” has been my motto for as long as I can remember. I suppose I have developed this attitude as a result of a life long dislike of Christmas. I can’t really explain it, it’s just something that my family and I have learned how to deal with. I leave them alone while they decorate…and they just… well, leave me alone. Most of this hostility comes from events in my past that I keep trying to get over, but haven’t had much success. At my age, I just cope with it and stop trying to analyze it. So, as a result, we just don’t make any big deal out of it and sooner or later it goes away. The funny thing is that about noon on Christmas day, I start to feel better and more cheerful. Now, maybe it’s because Christmas is almost over or maybe it’s because I have had time to relax a bit and start thinking about the true meaning of Christmas, or at least what I think it should be. I have to have a little time out to sit down and throw out the old stuff from years gone by and look at the new stuff of today and tomorrow. My wife and children know this and so they don’t get upset with me because they know at about mid day on Christmas, I start kicking myself out of the blue funk. They know that I love them and aren’t mad at them for anything. I really am blessed with a wonderful family. I have four sons and the best wife on this planet. They know me, they know my moods, they know my ways and they still keep coming around. To, me that’s the best gift I could ever hope to have. If you have your family, what gift could you buy that would be better? I keep saying each year that I will work harder to be a better person and more tolerant. Once I start doing this kind of self-inventory, I make a list of the things I need to work on in the coming year. Then after doing that I usually sit down and find a quiet place to sit and have a good cry. I know men aren’t supposed to cry, and if you tell anyone I’ll have to tear your tongue out. Once this is done, then I’m good for another year and ready to get on with life. I’d be a great candidate for some mental hospital study. Anyway, here it is past noon, and I’m at the point of getting going for another year. Time has basically stopped for a precious few hours. No hurry, no malls, no commercials, no stores crowded, no real hassles, just a good cup of coffee, some quiet music and this old computer screen looking me in the eye. I can always tell when I was relaxing by the way these columns are written. If I’m in a hurry, they stink. If I’m not, well, they aren’t too bad. Today, the words and thoughts are easy to express, and seem to make sense. I suppose my philosophy on Christmas is simple. I think it shouldn’t be one day of the year, but 365 days. We should be MERRY all year long, not for just 24 hours. Oh, I know, we have troubles, some of us have more than others, but we can all still try to keep a good attitude. No, I don’t have any answers as to why things happen. Why did someone good die? Why did someone bad live? Why did a flood wash away someone’s home? Why did someone go broke? I don’t have a clue. I just know that we all have to find a quiet place and sit down for just a few moments and thank God we are here today and that we are willing to face tomorrow, no matter what. Our lives are hard, our lives are too short for the things we had hoped to accomplish, but we cannot quit. In fact, we must not quit. Too many people depend upon you and I for things we sometimes aren’t even aware of. The lady at the store that needs our business to keep going. The mechanic that works on our cars…. And on and on. There is a verse in the Bible that says…”Sometimes we entertain angels, unaware.” Perhaps, sometimes we are the angels in other people’s lives and even we don’t know it, but they do. Who knows how many times we have helped someone that we didn’t know when we just gave them a few words of encouragement in the post office? Who knows if we ever kept someone from committing a crime by giving him or her a few bucks (that we really didn’t need) when they asked for it on the street? “If a man asks for bread, will you give him a stone?” asks the bible. No, I don’t think we will. I think we are better than that. I choose to think that men and women of this world have the ability to rise above giving stones, and will reach down deep and give up their bread to someone who needs it. Even in July. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.