Small Town America

     With Thanksgiving over, now we begin the countdown to Christmas.  There are so many things to take care of; shopping, wrapping, cooking, party planning, the church Christmas play, and sending Christmas cards.  Plus, the array of festive Christmas cookies that everyone expects you to bake, frost and decorate.

     Even if you manage to avoid the Black Friday crowds, there will be crowds from now until Christmas.  So many gifts to buy.  So many people to see.  So many places to go.  And, of course we must maintain a wonderful holiday spirit through it all.  We get so caught up in the hustle and bustle, that we forget what we are celebrating.

     Christmas is meant to be a day set apart to celebrate the birth of Jesus.  He came as a little baby in a manger.  He was surrouned by barn animals and smelly stalls.  They couldn’t even find a small corner in the inn where our Savior could be born.  We all know the story with the cows and sheep sharing the barn with the most precious gift that was ever given to the world.

     The angels sang, “Joy to the World” and “Glory to God in the Highest”.  They rejoice in the coming of the Lord.  They sang of “Peace on Earth and Good Will Toward Men”.  They experience joy unspeakable and full of glory.  We speak of Christmas dinner, Uncle Joe’s bad attitude, presents, presents, and more presents.  What has happened to us?

    We have taken our focus off of Jesus and placed it on ourselves.  We want more ham and sweet potatoes, more presents, and to win the arguement with Uncle Joe.   Let’s hurry through the gifts without knowledging the giver.  Let’s fight over the best seat to watch TV all afternoon or better still take a nap.

     What would happened if we changed Christmas back to its original state?  No shopping, no wrapping, no cookies, no parties, and no stress, would be the norm.  We could exchange small tokens of love with friends and family; a jar of homemade jam, a crocheted rug, a hand made birdhouse.  And we would talk about Jesus and sing about Jesus, and tell stories about Jesus.

     What would happen if you only bought one gift for each person on your list?  Or better, yet, make them a gift.  My niece always makes me her special peanut butter fudge.  I would rather have that than anything she could buy me.  I’m no good at making fudge and hers comes out perfect every time.

   How can we tone down the commercialism of the holiday?  How can we recapture it’s true meaning?  When will we realize what are the important things in life?  Let’s make a real effort to KEEP CHRIST IN CHRISTMAS.

     Black Friday, what an awful way to describe one of the most enjoyable days of the year.  That is if you like to shop till you drop.  I know the retailers have a reason for this name, I just have never liked it much.

     After stuffing ourselves with turkey and pumpkin pie, we will get up at the crack of dawn to shop.  This year some stores are opening at midnight Thanksgiving Day to get a head start on the crazy shoppers.  If the deals are good enough, people will stand in line outside in the cold for hours; some even spend the night.    There is NO special that good to me.  I don’t like being cold and I can’t stand in long lines.

     We used to go shopping every year on Black Friday with our best friends, Myron and Lena.  Some times we would even stay over night together so we could get an early start.  I have pictures to prove how bad we all look in the morning.  We would shop all morning, then have lunch, and shop some more.

     By mid afternoon, our feet needed a break, so we would slip in to see the latest holiday movie.  Then more shopping.  We often would hit several different towns during the day.  By evening we were completely exhausted so we would gather at one of our houses and have Thanksgiving left overs for dinner.

    By this time we could do nothing more, except drag our tired bones home and to bed.  But, oh, the fun we had.  We would laugh and sing Christmas songs.  We would act like silly kids, because we knew no one was looking on that day.  Everyone was looking for that best deal of the day, so they didn’t care about four old fogies acting like kids.

     A few years ago, Myron went to be with the Lord.  That ended our Black Friday adventures.  Now mostly we stay home and avoid the crowds.  But, we sure had a lot of fun during those years and made a lot of wonderful memories.

     In 1620, when the Mayflower sailed from England to the New World, the pilgrims had no idea what to expect in this new place.  They had brought only a very few items with witch  to start their new lives.  They felt it was worth the sacrifice in order to worship God in a way they desired, instead of yielding to the mighty Church of England.

     The men brought only a few tools so they could build new homes.  The ladies brought an iron pot for cooking, making soap, and making candles.  They also had a few iron pans to cook with.  The children brought no toys  to play with.  It was a difficult two months at sea.

    When they finally saw land, they were overjoyed.  The children could run up an down the beach, and no one had to feel sea sick again.  They had left England in warm September, but arrived in cold November.  They had to hurry to build some kind of shelter before the winter snows began.

     Many of the pilgrims died that first winter.  The combination of cold, starvation and sickness was just too much to bear. By spring they had made some friends with the native Americans, especially an Indian named Squanto.  He and the other Indians showed the pilgrims how to hunt deer, plant food, and find roots and berries that could be used for food or medicine.  It was a hard life, but no one wanted to go back to England when the Mayflower sailed away.

     By the end of that summer the pilgrims had plenty of food, warm houses, and good friends.  The first Thanksgiving lasted 3 days and there were more Indians in attendance tha pilgrims.  They had their celebration a little earlier in the year, probably in September of 1621.

    They had all kinds of food: wild turkey, geese, ducks and deer.  From the ocean they took lobsters, clams and many kinds of fish.  From their gardens, they had corn, cabbage, turnips,radishes, onions, and beets.  The used pumpkins, squash, fruit and nuts to make a variety of pies.

     Everyone ate, and ate, and ate.  The women cooked, and baked, and served for 3 days.  The men and children found time to play games.  It was a wonderful way to thank God for all His provision and protection in the New World.

  President Abraham Lincoln made Thanksgiving an official holiday in 1863; right in the middle of the Civil War.  He declared Thanksgiving was to be celebrated on the last Thursday in November.  It was a time to thank God for all His blessings.  Let’s keep the tradition alive and really concentrate on being thankful.

     Let’s see what we have to be thankful for:

T- is for all the teachers, who have made a difference in your life.

H- is for your home and all the warmth it offers.

A-is for your animals, who give you unconditional love.

N-is for your neighbors.  They make life interesting.

K-is for all the kisses you get from your kids and grand kids.

S- is for our salavation , through Jesus Christ.

G-is for your grandparents and all they have given to you.

I- is for intelligence, which we all have to some degree.

V-is for all the wonderful vacations you have experienced.

I- is for integrity, a much needed virtue.

N-is for all the nurses and doctors who help us with our medical needs.

G-is for God’s greatness and awesome love for us.

     Now wasn’t that easy? We all have so many things to thank God for this thanksgiving.  Let’s not forget what the holiday is all about.