Christmas is Gone

“Christmas is gone”     by Sheryl Anne Lehman                 2013

My son’s words echoed in my mind. Yes, he meant it as a joke. He is old enough to know that we celebrate during this time of year with decorations that are meant for…yes, the season’s celebration. We have sometimes left the said decorations up for an unusually long time, but they are eventually packed up until the next Christmas/Hanukah time of year.

One year, I convinced my employer to leave the tree up and decorate it with symbols from the upcoming holiday. (We got some complaints from customers so we only left it up for 5 1/2 months. It was a conversation piece at first, but an experiment that we gave up on.)

 I was not surprised when my family noticed that I had removed the tree, the nativity set, and the village with snow covered houses. I know that they expect me to take down the lighted star in the window, but am I also taking down the light from within me as well?

I have heard from well meaning preachers that we need to keep the Christmas story throughout the year. Church mentors from my past, told me we couldn’t have an Easter without a Christmas. This, I believe to be God’s true design. Christ came as a baby to live among us, in order that He could chose to take the punishment for our sins on the cross.

The questions I ask myself are simple. Do we keep the Christmas Light in our hearts even after the star is removed? Do we let it shine for 5 ½ months until someone complains? Do people feel that Christmas is gone when our house decorations come down?

We have choices. We could box up our wishes of hope and good-will until the next season; We could let our joy be kept inside, knowing that our Easter is coming; Or we can continue to let the outward show of a Christmas blessing be for others all year.

 So, as the statement circles in my mind, I can say;

“No, Christmas is most certainly not gone.”