Hand-painted Christmas Carol music box; one of my favorite decorations.

Christmas-time still makes me happy. And I wonder about that—because I’m definitely old enough to have outgrown it. But I never have. I hum Christmas songs as I go about putting up the tree. I love the red, green and gold colors of the season and when the weather snaps and crackles with cold, uh-huh even better.

I write this because one afternoon as I handled an ornament that had seen better days, it struck me as absurd that a combination of colors, glass balls, song lyrics and winter in the air should excite my mind and cause me to hum happily.

Does that mean I believe in Santa Claus? I won’t answer on grounds that I may be committed. 🙂 Do I hope Santa will bring gifts on that magical morning?

I have more ‘gifts’ than I can keep dusted and give thanks over already—no gifts please, Santa. And it’s not like I grew up in a home where Christmas was a big gift-giving affair. My siblings and I were all happy and thought it was a good Christmas when we got our customary apple, orange, a hand-full of walnuts and several pieces of hard ribbon candy—all in one of Dad’s socks—wow, that was fun! I’ve always believed giving truly is as much fun as getting.

Three days before the big day I had better things to be doing, but I was suddenly very curious by my childlike enjoyment of Christmas. So, I made a cup of tea and settled into my comfy chair to give this phenomenon deeper thought.

A short doze, and a second cup of tea later, I reached a conclusion: Christmas is a state of mind—just like happiness is. I mean really, logically, colors of red, green and gold, song lyrics of home and hearth and frosty weather happen on days other than just December 25, and without the ‘Christmas’ reaction. It’s all in the mind.

Each year, come December, childhood memories that lie buried eleven months out of the year, rise to the surface bringing the same excitement and fun as when I was six, ten, twelve … and I’m carried back to childhood … back to Christmas.

This gave me an idea for an experiment. I’m leaving all my Christmas decorations up through tax time. Maybe it’ll help me keep a happy state of mind as I empty my bank account in ‘giving’. I’ll let you know. 🙂

I hope you had a great Christmas! And keep God uppermost in your thoughts and plans for the 2017!

Until next time, signing off with hugs. 🙂 🙂 🙂