Holy Night

Last night our family joined our neighbors family to go to a Christmas Eve service at their church. It isn't far from our house and is a small church I've passed by many times on the way home from work. (Trinity Christian for any locals who may want to know.) We followed the Wises - funny, I just got that, three Wise women and one Wise man - to hear the story of the Christ child being born in a manger. A story I have heard dozens of times. We walked into the church and I thought "well this is different." There are no pews for people, only padded upholstered stacking chairs that you might find in an office building to be used in multi-purpose room. The sanctuary was lined along the outer walls with cast-off sofas and chairs which would have been more at home in someones' family room. The most striking difference in this sanctuary was the dais wasn't used for a pulpit and choir but instead had several round table and chairs with more sofas and chairs lining it.

What would normally be thought of as the dais was in the middle of one wall of the sanctuary - not raised above everyone, but on the same level with only a simple Cross attached to the wall between two sets of stained glass windows. The choir was actually a band of four: one man playing guitar and operating as the lead singer, a woman accompanying him while playing the accordion, one man was playing the bongos (which I've also never seen done) and the fourth man was playing the mandolin. We had just arrived as they were starting the evenings singing. Simple. Unadorned. Four instruments and hundreds of voices old and young singing along to "Joy to the World" followed by "Hark the Herald Angel Sing," my heart remembering the words without having to look at the program.

The pastor spoke then of the often told Christmas story and said to us that we have heard the story so many times we probably don't even hear the words anymore. We sing the same songs so much that we don't hear their meaning anymore. And he asked us to really listen this time to hear the words that were being said, to open up to what the story really is about... the gift of love. For god so loved us that he sacrificed his only son to save us.

We ended the services with "Silent Night" accompanied by the band as people held candles and passed the light around.  The lights of the sanctuary were dimmed as the light that was passed grew stronger one flicker of flame at a time. At the end it was only the light of the candles (glow sticks for the little ones) and the voices of people singing again the first verse:

Silent night, holy night
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon Virgin Mother and Child
Holy Infant so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace

May you find peace, love, and joy. That is my Christmas wish for everyone. Merry Christmas.

Focusing on the Wrong Issue

One thing I want to say is all of you who speak about how we shouldn't turn this into a talk about gun controls or bans because of what happened today... I want you to go and tell that to the families of the people who have lost their children. Face to face. Go ahead, tell them it's not guns that murdered their child, that a person did and see how much solace that gives those mothers and fathers. And those who say we need guns in the hands of innocent people to protect themselves from this sort of evil are delusional. Not one person inside or outside of law enforcement with a gun was able to prevent this horrific tragedy. NOT ONE.

There is one particular heinous Facebook post this afternoon that said we might as well ban machetes and chainsaws (lay off the horror movies buddy) if we start legislating stricter gun control. If somebody is coming at you with a knife you at least have a chance to run or shield yourself from an attacker and have a greater chance of surviving. Plus there’s less chance of a knife (or chainsaw?!?) attack turning into a mass murder. And chainsaw attacks – wouldn’t you hear the chainsaw being revved up before the-would-be attacker got close?

Second amendment arguers can also step back. The founding fathers could never have foreseen the invention of the semi- automatic weapon. Check your history books and ask some experts about the time it takes to actually load a Revolutionary War Era musket with powder and a lead ball. Accuracy of muskets? Ask yourself why the troops were told not to fire until they saw “the whites of the eyes” of the British. It’s because they couldn’t waste a shot.  Today’s weaponry is just heinous.

 

I wrote that yesterday with tears streaming down my face. I stand behind these statements today. I don't want to read or hear the mass murderer's name or why he did it - or how focusing on mental health issues could have prevented it. Truth is it would take more tax dollars which no one is willing to give up right now. Since the 1970's this country has systematically dismantled any mental health programs that may have kept someone like this man off the streets and away from our children. I'm not even sure that he would have been locked away. Did anyone think he was a threat? Right now though, the story needs to focus on the monstrosity of this act and others like it in the recent past. I don't care to see reporters pushing microphones in the faces of the families who are dealing with grief. I don't want to see news trucks surrounding funerals and disturbing these families at what rightfully so should not be a public spectacle. I almost didn't publish this post because of that. However I do feel that it is more than past time to have a real and honest discussion about gun control.

I'm Dreaming of a...

One of the hazards of this time of year is the constant onslaught of messages telling us to create the most magical Christmas ever! Compound that with this being the busiest time at work and you can see why I just wanted to go hibernate somewhere - alone. Instead I decided to make the best of it and tune to the Holiday Station on streaming radio with my smart phone instead of hearing the same 20 pop songs ad nauseum. Yeah I know, my first mistake. Here's some things I've learned from listening to "Sounds of the Season" for the past few days while at work.

1) The worst holiday song is not, I repeat is not "The Little Drummer Boy." In fact The Jackson Five's version is probably the best in my opinion because it is decidedly more upbeat. Plus you can't get a better message than a song that says giving of yourself is the best gift. No the worst song by far is "Baby's First Christmas" By Connie Francis.  Just typing those words has caused the song to loop endlessly in my brain. It's an inane, cloying, and insipid piece of work that someone found in a dustbin somewhere and decided to throw into the mix for a little variety. Which brings me to...

2) There are only 15 Christmas songs that have ever been written. Go ahead, name more than fifteen. Can't do it can you? There are on the other hand thousands of versions of the same songs recorded every year. It's a record label contract requirement that at some point in a singer's career they have to record an album of Christmas music. Need proof? Barry Manilow. Bette Midler. Britney Spears. That point is usually on the down side of their career trajectory. And this brings me to another singer who probably has done more harm with their renditions of Christmas songs...

3) Dean Martin. Rudy the Red Beaked Reindeer? Really? I understand that artists want to put their own "stank" on music but this is one that should have been bitch-slapped and told "nuh uh." I'm blaming him for everyone jumping on the bandwagon for the besmirchment of "Baby, It's Cold Outside." Before Deano got a hold of it it was about two people who are trying to come up with any excuse to stay together a little longer for an evening. After listening to Dean's version several times a day I can understand why people think the guy put something in the gal's drink. I always thought that the girl was trying to give herself an out and saying she wasn't responsible for her actions. You have to remember that at the time the song was written it wasn't respectable for a single woman to be in a man's home after a certain time of the night.

The old saw about everything in moderation also applies to Christmas music. I don't know why stations haven't figured out that all or nothing doesn't work. A better way would be to mix Christmas music in with the regular stuff. Oh, one last thing, would someone destroy all the copies of 'Babies First Christmas" please?