Christmas is in my interpretation the supposed pinnacle of joy and fun each year when family members from across the globe (or the rooms of the same house), reunite to celebrate the birth of Christ. There can be a heated debate about which holiday dictates more family unision: xmas or thanksgiving, but personally, being a traditional Non-American (residential non-alien is what they list me as on my passport) Catholic, I would like believe in the latter as it represents a more global tradition. I am Catholic by default, but if one questions the extent to which I practice piously and wholeheartedly believe in the religion, I rest my case.
Naturally, this glamourous occasion has evolved to include our friends, lovers, and anonymous individuals (some guy by the xmas tree), as we continue to encourage the spirit of sharing and caring beyond our blood-ties. Even for those Non-Christmas practicing individuals who out of principles and values, blindly or not, guide themselves to contradict the spirit by staying home alone drinking or blatantly wreaking havoc out on the streets, somewhere within their souls, the harboring of unfulfilled emotional cravings meets a flame that has been lite to ignite some celebratory sense of excitement or comfort. Afterall, for those of us, like myself, who have long been disconnected with the idea of Christmas (one of a few reasons being...I stopped receiving presents wrapped as gifts or simply became smart enough to suspect the reality of the cast of christmas characters), surely the adapation of an obese, old, and winter-proof Santa Claus, spotty red nose reindeer that fly, promiscious female elves in tight green stockings (hm...), and gifts that fulfill our dreamy desires, should reinstill some sort of hope and optimism in our lives?
A time of prayer. A time of joy. A time to reflect. A time to spend $$. A time to stuff our faces silly. Let us recognize, not all of us are fortunate enough to share in good faith. While some of us are starving to death unknowingly in the dark corners of the world, the rest of us are still logging hours at work through the wee hours of the night. Yes, even on Christmas Day. Nevertheless, we are grateful of what we have and wish everyone smiles and positive energy-Qi. As the complexity of world issues becomes more convoluting and the interconnectedness of individuals at the personal/physical level becomes more digital, what's left of us as emotional and rational beings to engage what we often hear as : "change the world" or "out of touch"? Is Christmas another rare time during the year when reflection is socially endorsed?
Ironically, I spent Christmas eve with a buddy of mine watching the movie "Equilibrium", zipping on a beer to tunes of the howling wind striking against the windows. The movie, as inspired by the lofty books 1984 and Farenheit 451, reminds us that our feelings of jealousy, hatred, fear, love, anger and forgiveness..etc, gives us the ability to sense. We should not be deprived of or restrained from sensing, for it is perhaps what defines us as beings (of course, there are consequences of out-of-control sensing that affects social norms -don't get crazy ideas). During Christmas time, our senses are heightened, our feelings are vulnerable, and our minds open up to absorb like sponges. Fact: the period from Christmas to New Years is the highest mating period during the year. Whether you like it or not you were probably made during this time (Stamp: Made in China Dec 2008). Everybody is getting it on! People are sensing out there! No wonder the streets are desolate. From a rather suspicious angle, the cultivation of Christmas ass over the years has renewed the "spirit" of our holiday.
Naturally, this glamourous occasion has evolved to include our friends, lovers, and anonymous individuals (some guy by the xmas tree), as we continue to encourage the spirit of sharing and caring beyond our blood-ties. Even for those Non-Christmas practicing individuals who out of principles and values, blindly or not, guide themselves to contradict the spirit by staying home alone drinking or blatantly wreaking havoc out on the streets, somewhere within their souls, the harboring of unfulfilled emotional cravings meets a flame that has been lite to ignite some celebratory sense of excitement or comfort. Afterall, for those of us, like myself, who have long been disconnected with the idea of Christmas (one of a few reasons being...I stopped receiving presents wrapped as gifts or simply became smart enough to suspect the reality of the cast of christmas characters), surely the adapation of an obese, old, and winter-proof Santa Claus, spotty red nose reindeer that fly, promiscious female elves in tight green stockings (hm...), and gifts that fulfill our dreamy desires, should reinstill some sort of hope and optimism in our lives?
A time of prayer. A time of joy. A time to reflect. A time to spend $$. A time to stuff our faces silly. Let us recognize, not all of us are fortunate enough to share in good faith. While some of us are starving to death unknowingly in the dark corners of the world, the rest of us are still logging hours at work through the wee hours of the night. Yes, even on Christmas Day. Nevertheless, we are grateful of what we have and wish everyone smiles and positive energy-Qi. As the complexity of world issues becomes more convoluting and the interconnectedness of individuals at the personal/physical level becomes more digital, what's left of us as emotional and rational beings to engage what we often hear as : "change the world" or "out of touch"? Is Christmas another rare time during the year when reflection is socially endorsed?
Ironically, I spent Christmas eve with a buddy of mine watching the movie "Equilibrium", zipping on a beer to tunes of the howling wind striking against the windows. The movie, as inspired by the lofty books 1984 and Farenheit 451, reminds us that our feelings of jealousy, hatred, fear, love, anger and forgiveness..etc, gives us the ability to sense. We should not be deprived of or restrained from sensing, for it is perhaps what defines us as beings (of course, there are consequences of out-of-control sensing that affects social norms -don't get crazy ideas). During Christmas time, our senses are heightened, our feelings are vulnerable, and our minds open up to absorb like sponges. Fact: the period from Christmas to New Years is the highest mating period during the year. Whether you like it or not you were probably made during this time (Stamp: Made in China Dec 2008). Everybody is getting it on! People are sensing out there! No wonder the streets are desolate. From a rather suspicious angle, the cultivation of Christmas ass over the years has renewed the "spirit" of our holiday.
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