A mostly wonderful time of the year

As a general rule, I like Christmas music. I turn it on while I am wrapping presents or baking cookies to help get into the Christmas spirit.

I don’t even mind hearing Christmas tunes in stores while I’m shopping, even if it begins earlier than necessary. Lately, I’ve been listening to Christmas tunes crooned by Michael Bublé as well as some oldies like Tony Bennett, Beach Boys, Frank Sinatra, Chuck Berry, Bing Crosby and Gene Autry. There’s even a line I had never noticed before in the song “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas” that says “and mom and dad can hardly wait for school to start again.”

I love when “Mele Kalikimaka” comes on because it’s featured in one of my favourite Christmas movies, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. This is played in the scene where Clark Griswold (played by Chevy Chase) is daydreaming as he gazes at his backyard, imagining his relatives enjoying the pool that he hopes to build with that year’s Christmas bonus.

Then I realized that there is one song that I really dislike, and even find a bit distasteful which is “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.” Is it just me, or is that a lot of pressure? Yes, in many ways the Christmas season is wonderful. Visiting with family that you may not often see, playing board games, skiing and tobogganing and then having a cup of hot chocolate. There are special treats and events like school Christmas concerts and staff Christmas parties. Decorations and presents add to the festive feel.

My 13-year-old is eagerly waiting to see his cousin who lives a few hours away, a much-anticipated first boy cousin who is now six. I loved hearing this, because, as a parent, it’s always a priority that the kids aren’t focusing too much on what presents they will be receiving. That’s why we still exchange names for cousin and sibling gifts so that they can practice noticing what someone else would like or need as a gift.

This is all wonderful, but yet there is a not so wonderful side to Christmas too. There are people who are experiencing their first Christmas without their spouse, parent or child. There are people struggling to pay for the extra Christmas expenses. That doesn’t sound too wonderful. It’s a lot of pressure to make the season a magical time, especially for parents with small children. Luckily, I can press skip when “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” comes on and return to my cheerful preparations for the season.

One of these preparations is seeing a new Christmas movie. This year, we saw Red One with Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans and it did not disappoint. When a villain kidnaps Santa Claus (code name Red One) from the North Pole, an ELF (Extremely Large and Formidable) operative joins forces with the world’s most accomplished tracker to find Santa and save Christmas.

This movie keeps the magic of Christmas intact, but what impressed me most was the message that was repeated throughout the movie. There’s talk of being on the naughty versus nice list, and Santa notes that every day, every choice we make gives us the opportunity to be good. That means that our choices, big and small, add up to be who we are, not just at Christmas, but all year. (Though my kids also claimed that the other take away messages were: don’t be a witch, and don’t bake macaroons for Santa.)

Maybe that’s the “wonderful” that the song is getting at–not the presents, the feast, not even seeing loved ones. Maybe it’s each person trying to care more, sharing more, trying to be the best person they can be. Perhaps that is what makes it a wonderful time of year.