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"Don't take offenses,
Come to your senses,
Your confidences straddling fences"
I guess I'm not much of a Christmasy person. I don't know if I ever have been, certainly not recently. Last year I did a bit of informal research on the traditions of Christmas- essentially a deconstruction- through which I learned many things... it did have the side effect of nearly destroying my faith... but that is besides the point.
Most Christmas traditions in America, Canada, and England have been implemented since the 1820's or so, for a time under Oliver Cromwell celebrating Christmas was outlawed in England, Christmas was also banned in New England for a while, the Continental Congress actually met for over 50 years on Christmas day without a mention of Christmas in their records, and so on. Apparently, prior to A Christmas Carol it was a fairly common thing for people to work on Christmas Day. Even in allowing time off around Christmas, companies are counting on an economic boon. I guess that hasn't really changed. In France in the 1950's, after the American cultural invasion due to the reconstruction, some monks got asignificant amount of press when they hanged an effigy of St. Nicholas. I thought that was particularly amusing.
Cromwell thought that the celebration of Christmas ought to be outlawed since it was essentially a Pagan and Catholic (Dear God!) holiday. Ivan says that I probably ought not take advice on such points from Cromwell. I sort of went through a "you can deconstruct the meaning out of anything" phase.
it personally offends me a great deal when I go into a store and Christmas music is playing. Not because there ought to be a culture that ignores Christmas, but rather because it is a manner of marketing. I don't doubt that there are studies done on which type of music should be played in a store to make the customer more likely to spend money. It isn't a celebration, it's a calculated decision. In America, this means that it is socially acceptable to trample someone to death in order to save 5$ on Wrangler jeans and continue to shop. Perhaps that is due to herd mentality though.
Something I wrote last year, when I was writing a very cynical Christmas album. You see, I really don't get this stuff. Christmas just makes me feel like a hypocrit
I remember as a kid,
watching the news round Christmas
Russian Cards to Santa Claus,
Asking for boots for their Grandmas
We all agreed that it was sad,
Then went back to the Christmas we planned.
Christmas buying season's begun,
Let's stampede to the big screens.
Hope they come with financing,
This deal's too good to be missing.
If some get trampled under foot,
At least they died for the greater good:
God wanted me to have this.
In spite of this, today by no fault of my own I woke up early, and started doing random things on the internet. I started to listen to Sufjan Steven's Songs for Christmas. Then I saw some ham in the fridge and decided to make myself an omlette with brie and bok choy. It was very tasty. Then I went in the next room and found some candy cane cookies that my mom made a day or two ago. I was lookiung out the window, drinking maple tea and suddenly I felt somewhat Christmasy. It is an unusual feeling for me.
I don't usually like Christmas music though. I guess I don't really 'get' it. I must admit though, I do have a rather formative connection between 'Como on Ring Those Bells.' I think the idea of listening to Christmas music this morning has to do with my near idolatry of Sufjan Stevens more than anything. I don't think it really counts as idolatry though, if he is actually God incarnate. Seriously though, that man makes me feel things I never thought possible. I'm going to keep that last sentance as awkward sounding as it is. I didn't really mean it to sound sketchy though!
Merry Christmas! Also, I'm amused that facebook is advertising a video of a "Naked Bike Ride" to promote environmental issues to the right of this text box as I write this. |
| | Posted 12/10/2008 11:33 AM - 32 Views - 2 eProps - 1 Comment
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