Christmas: One Big Ole "Pay It Forward?"

As the Christmas holiday approaches, I focus on how such a simple holiday (the birth of a religious figure) has taken on so many different meanings for different people.

First, the religious celebrate the birth of a saviour...right next to the pagan tree with a pagan yule log and commercial gifts. As Arsenio Hall would say, "things that make you go hmmm..."

Some just celebrate a great time for shopping and buying people gifts. These are split into the people who like to give gifts to friends and actually smile while thinking that a present will be enjoyed by the recipient and the second - a group of people who tally every cent you spend on them last year, subtract 10% for depreciation and then allocate your gift fund. These are often the people that decorate their house with so many lights that it can be seen from the moon.

Finally, there is the group of people that just enjoy being with family and friends. Not the forced, awkward, often bitter family gatherings of movie lore, but actual good food, good friends, good times.

If you listen to Christmas songs, you are constantly reminded that "it's the most wonderful time of the year" and everyone is in "good cheer." If you believe the opposite, you are dismissed as a grinch.

Basically, I guess Christmas is some big, ole "pay it forward" holiday. You make your friends happy, they make others happy, and it goes on and on. The bath set you bought for the admin at work made her so happy she bought a gift certificate for her sister who in turns feeds the hungry on Christmas. OK- maybe nothing that noble, but you get the point. I think it's the one time of the year when you're allowed to stop and soak in the love. But just in case you miss it, next week you get to hear the drunks say "I effin love you man, you're effin cool" as they celebrate New Year's eve.

Merry Christmas.
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