If I had influence with the good fairy who is
supposed to preside over the christening of all
children, I should ask that her gift to each child
in the world be a sense of wonder so indestructible
that it would last throughout life, as an unfailing
antidote against the boredom and disenchantments
of later years, and the sterile preoccupation with
things that are artificial, the alienation from
the sources of our strength.
--Rachel Carson, The Sense of Wonder--
supposed to preside over the christening of all
children, I should ask that her gift to each child
in the world be a sense of wonder so indestructible
that it would last throughout life, as an unfailing
antidote against the boredom and disenchantments
of later years, and the sterile preoccupation with
things that are artificial, the alienation from
the sources of our strength.
--Rachel Carson, The Sense of Wonder--
Over the weekend I watched the movie, If You Believe. The film is about stressed out book editor who lost Her sense of wonder and awe years ago...and her inner child shows up to show her how to find it again. Not a great movie, but I love the premise behind it....if we could just see Christmas time again through childhood eyes....feeling once again this thrill of a child's anticipation....and forget the rushed commercial world with all its frustration that Christmas has become....
....Indeed, for many of us, Christmas is a time of great stress. Hearts and feelings have grown cold and hard instead of being filled with joy and love. We worry about where the money will come from to purchase all of those gifts we feel obligated to buy. The, we stress over finding the perfect gifts and worry about whether they will like the gift you present to them....and then we fear that they will be disappointed. Yes, we have sight of these deeper joys that we saw through childhood eyes.
As children we had the uncanny ability to find magic in everything... whether it be our own back yards or the path we took on our way to school in the morning. I can still remember the excitement I felt as a kid, especially when I still believed in Santa Claus. I remember the thrill of hearing Santa and his reindeer on my roof...and then we begin to grow older, and one day someone tells us that Santa does not exist. I can still remember that day. I was playing on the swings with some neighborhood children who broke the news, the news that sent me racing home in tears. And, as I look back on it, that was the day that the magic left. That is when we lose that belief in things that we cannot see....
....but it need not be that way. Christmas never has to lose the magic we experienced as children because we have a choice; we can relive it year after year. Santa lives on in our hearts. We only need to look for him. The magic of Christmas is in the eyes of the believer and in the imagination and hearts of us all. Those two magic words "Merry Christmas" can never ever be erased.
Our hearts grow tender with childhood memories and love
of kindred, and we are better throughout the year for having,
in spirit, become a child again at Christmas-time.
--Laura Ingalls Wilder--
I'll have to check out the movie.
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful wish!
ReplyDeleteChristmas through the eyes of a child. :0)
I'll wish it for the both of us. (((hugs)))
This is all too true Mary...in the past I would at times get stressed out because I was a single mum trying to provide everything for her children with no help from their father. I finally gave that up...Santa gave what Santa was able to give and I just explained to them he had many to create for.
ReplyDeleteA few years back my grandson was told by his sperm donor father (at the age of three mind you) that there was no Santa. I told Firekeeper that Santa lived inside of each of us...that we are all Secret Santa's. He was delighted with that explanation and began making gifts for Grandma, and Momma and his little Sister...it really touched my heart with his understanding of it and how he turned it around. I could not understand the cruelty of his father for trying to crumple this little mans world but that is his cross to bear.
I don't have the money this year either so I've been busy making gifts...my grandchildren are the best ever as they understand my living situation...and I love them so much. Thankfully now Firekeeper is ten and totally gets it and my little Dolly girl is just a bubbly girl so whatever she receives is special for her. I try to create special times with them making cookies,fudge, that sort of thing and helping them to make cards for the family instead of getting caught up in commercialism of the holiday, so they understand the magic of it. They've not had an easy life either so this really helps them to understand this is all about Love before anything else.
I loved your quotes today...they are so full of meaning!
Thank you for this very poignant reminder!
Have a joyful day!
xoxo
How true!! I think that maybe we have to reject some of the holiday things that have become way too important, as in consuming - buying expensive presents, before we can take back. For one thing we need to free up some time! And I sense there is a bit of seasonal overload found in children now. My grandchildren seem to get just too much, so much they can barely enjoy any of it. It's overwhelming. I think in general, life has to be brought back to a more simpler existence and we can start small with the holidays.
ReplyDeleteEase back into the workplace, Mary! You don't want to move too fast or you'll get the bends!
ReplyDeleteThanks for this beautiful post. I sometimes feel a little sad around Christmas times because I'm so far away from home. But I spent Christmas in my home country last year and it still wasn't the same. I didn't feel the same as I did when I was a young girl. So many things have changed.
ReplyDeleteThis year I'm going to try to really connect with my inner child and nurture it. I think the inner child is really the essence within us. The pure and joyful. It is more present in us when we are kids. But if we can tap into it we can still feel the same wonder as we once did :)
"...a sense of wonder so indestructible
ReplyDeletethat it would last throughout life,..."
That is an amazing quote!!!
Beautiful, and wise, as always!
ReplyDelete