Holiday Musing
Haves and Have nots
Another snow storm moved through the valley Sunday afternoon. I enjoyed walking in the quiet snow fall, a perfect storm with no wind and fluffy flakes drifting slowly to the ground. Even though I was crossing the crowded parking lot of Best Buy it seemed picturesque. And yet when D and I left the store and were getting back into my car, we noticed people standing waiting for the bus in the snow.
It got me thinking about how we often take so many things for granted. Here I had a nice car I was about to climb into and turn the heat on and over there was someone standing in the snow waiting for a bus. We even passed a family with strollers waiting for a bus on the ride home.
Now I've spent time standing in a snow storm waiting for a bus when I lived in Europe. It didn't seem to me a particular hardship, so maybe those people standing on the curb didn't mind so much. Still, having a car in Europe is a sign of wealth, and it's pretty easy to get by without one. On the other hand, not having a car out here in the western U.S. is a sign of poverty or hardship and can be a real hassle, especially here in Utah where public transportation is a joke.
I have never been poor by any stretch of the imagination. I have always had enough to meet my needs and be comfortable. I usually don't have that much for frills, but the reality is I have a nice car, a nice home, and plenty to eat. That makes me better off than 95% of the world's population. Some of it I have worked for, but my intelligence came built in and it wouldn't matter a damn how smart I might be if I had been born in a rural village in Ethiopia. I can't help but feel most of it is a gift and that I am incredibly blessed (or lucky depending on your belief system).
That being the case, I try and be generous with what I have, especially at Christmas. Finding a charity you believe in, which is responsible with donations can sometimes be harder than it would first seem. Here's an article from SmartMoney.com that gives advice and some good reference links for finding a charity that's a good fit for you. And don't forget to look locally. Many local charities struggle in their goals because large national charities are easier to find.
Salvation Army Bell Ringers
Certainly one of the most visible charities at Christmas time, the bell ringers were always a sign of the season for me as a kid. Maybe it was because growing up in Mesa, Arizona, the bell ringers were as close to sleigh bells as I ever got, but I loved it when the bell ringers started appearing in front of stores. Somehow the spirit of the season, selfless giving, was tied up in the bells for me as well. Sadly, that's not the case so much any more.
Bell ringers aren't nearly as ubiquitous these days as they were when I was young. I don't know if the Salvation Army just has a harder time finding volunteers, if it doesn't bring in as much money as it used to or if they just aren't as welcome anymore. Much has been made of Target Corporation's ban on solicitation of any kind. I'm sure many feel that an exception should be made for the bell ringers at Christmas time. Perhaps. But in today's world where morality has been abused to the point that it has little meaning any more, if Target makes one exception to the rule, how many other causes would demand the same exception be made? Bastards like Fred Phelps have forced a couple communities to ban monuments of any kind in order to justify banning his monuments to hate.
The bell ringers are complicated for me in my adult world in any case. On the one hand, they are a childhood symbol of the season of selfless giving. On the other hand the Salvation Army is one of those faith based organization that continues to discriminate against homosexuals in their employment policies. Kinda hard to feel warm and fuzzy giving money to such organizations these days.
There is something sad about the whole affair for me. I know some who get all bent out of shape over the presence of bell ringers. I'm not one of them. Like I said, I like the bells. It's a part of the season for me. Regardless of their views about my sexuality, they do accomplish some good in this world and it doesn't bother me that people are tossing their spare change into the buckets. I am just not one of them anymore.
Am I missing something that it seems that simple to me? If you have issues with the Salvation Army—whether it be their stance on homosexuality, or that they are a Christian organization and you are [insert non-Christian belief system here]—no one is forcing you to give them money. It seems rather selfish to deny others who have no such issues an easy opportunity to give money to those less fortunate than themselves, even if it's only spare change.
Eventually enough people might have issues with the Salvation Army that it becomes a thing of the past, that it, like the dinosaurs—unable to adapt to a changing world, unable to open their minds to a broader view of God's love for Creation— falls into extinction. And that is sad, too.
Tim Allen
Some will surely see Tim's Santa Claus movies as cheesy kitch, but I love them. If I had to describe how I envision God, Santa Claus is pretty damn close. I see god as a man who loves laughter. I see him as one who does not base his estimation of your worth nor does he limit his love or for you or his generosity based on your belief in him or on how strictly you adhere to "the rules." Whether or not you believe in him he is out there working to bring you what happiness he can send your way. It may only last a moment before it is swept away in the chaos that is life, but just like a toy in your stocking Christmas morning won't keep you from being teased at school or solve any of the myriad of problems we have in this life, it is a moment of joy when all the rest doesn't matter. Those moments are what keeps our souls afloat. White beard and red suit optional.
The best part of the stories is when the adults have their long lost faith restored and the disappointment they have harbored over the years is washed away with no recriminations or judgements, only love and generosity. If there is a God, and I tend to believe there is, that is exactly how I imagine our reunion with him will be.
I'm sure that some of it also has to do with looking back on simpler, more innocent times when the only concern I had during the holidays was the number and size of presents under the tree.