A 2014 Christmas

By Nicholas Neyhouse on December 27, 2014

My mini tree complete with a ‘Linus playing the saxophone ornament’

I recently did my annual viewing of “A Charlie Brown Christmas”. Just as Charlie Brown feels weighed down by his own existential thoughts and questions of Christmas I reflected on my own viewpoints of the holiday season.

In the peanuts special, Charlie wonders what Christmas is really all about. He questions if Christmas is about the gift giving, the Christmas cards, the lights, or the tree. He asks multiple people what it’s about and what he must do to feel the Christmas spirit, because he feels depressed.

Charlie Brown tries to get involved in the Christmas play, and he tries to buy the ‘correct tree’, but he does not seem to find the Christmas spirit that other’s contain in their hearts and show in their smiles.

Lucy tells him he must be invovled with the activities of Christmas like their play. Snoopy shows that the lights are the most important. Linus gives a monologue of the birth of Jesus, and proclaims that Christmas isn’t about the material things, but about the religious background.

After all of this what finally seems to cheer up Charlie is when his friends take his tiny tree and dress it up all nice. They then sing all together.

The story leaves the viewer with the feeling that the religious tendencies and the power of friendship together define Christmas. As the monologue comes near the end, and the final song is “Hark the Angles Sing”.

I feel the power of friendship this year as I spend time with those that I love. We give and receive gifts, share meals, watch movies, listen to music, and tell stories.

Although I’m not christian. I don’t partake in the religious aspects of Christmas. I think religion can be a wonderful aspect to the holiday and can play an important and good role in people’s lives. My goal is not to bash religion at all, but is rather to point out that Christmas, and everything that goes with it, fill my heart with true joy without religion.

Christmas is what you make of it, and I believe the true purpose of Christmas is to have a moment where you feel comfortable and joyful. If you want to include the religious aspect I support that, although don’t find it necessary. So, I hope everyone gets to have that feeling this year, and whether you call that moment Christmas or not doesn’t really matter.

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