Many of you are hearing from your children “All I want for Christmas is...” Some children give their parents a list a mile long. A momma of one of my grandson’s friends said she thought her son must have thought Santa got a raise this year from his “I want” list. I found that amusing. I think she told him that even Santa had some limits.
I thought, luckily for him his mom is teaching him some boundaries when it comes to Christmas. I have seen parents go overboard when it comes to Christmas gifts, and all the children ever learn is “I get anything I want.” I must admit this bothers me because I have seen so many of these kids grow up and be disrespectful to their parents. It is then I think a lot of that disrespect is the parent’s own fault.
I still believe in children having to work for some things and should have chores at home. I also believe they should be rewarded for good behavior, when they make good grades or use their manners without thinking about it or being told.
It really upsets me to be in stores and hear the way people speak to their children. I feel respect should be two-fold when it comes to your children. They are little people who thrive on what their parents tell them. They do not need to stress or internalize hateful things told to them. If you want to have a child who respects others, he will mimic your actions. Your actions could make a difference in his self-esteem or how valuable he feels as a person. If I could have a wish for Christmas, it would be that every little child gets treated with love from their parents. Sometimes a kind word from a stranger spoken to a child in a store could make a difference in his day.
Have you thought about your Christmas list? Do you bother to make one? I think a lot of this stems from how you were brought up. When I grew up, the Sears catalogue and the J.C. Penney catalogue could keep me dreaming for a long time, but did I ever tell my Mom and Dad I wanted anything for Christmas? I never did! The reason was I knew my parents did the best they could for us with the money they had. Did I enjoy Christmas? Every year, I loved it because we got together with family members and I looked forward to cousins and aunts and uncles coming to our house and our going to their homes. If I had another wish for Christmas, it would be that family members were closer like they used to be, that it wouldn’t have to be a funeral or other malady for people to show support in a family. Have we let our lives get too busy to pick up a phone and call one another more often? I am guilty and I promise to do better.
Another thing I do not agree with is teachers asking what all the children got for Christmas. I remember in my classroom, there were kids who didn’t get anything to tell about. Can you imagine how they felt when it came their time to speak?
Another wish for children is that teachers will be sensitive to their feelings.
My main wish for Christmas is that I do not see a merry Xmas anywhere. It even bothers me to type it in. “X” stands for an unknown. Christ walked on the earth, was seen by men and his birth needs to be celebrated. It is true that the exact time of his birth is not recorded, but the Bible tells us a light so bright shone that even wise men followed the light to the place of his birth. I still believe He is the “Light of the World.” My wish is that we will keep Christ in Christmas and no matter how commercial Christmas becomes that we will not forget the greatest gift of all, that if we never get even one gift for Christmas we will realize the importance of that gift.
I hope I will be more mindful of others and less focused on self during this holiday season. Maybe we should all be more mindful of this.
I am going to wish again this year that maybe my little grandson, Simon, will say “Mama” or “Dada.” If that could happen that would make my Christmas extra special.
