I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day...

It's hard to believe that Christmas is just a week away, it seems as if this whole last year someone just pressed fast-forward. I made a list a few days ago of the things I needed to do before I head out on Saturday and one of the things I put at the top of the list was to write one more post before I go...something about my thoughts on Christmas. Each year I try and enjoy this special season, but it seems sometimes the last few years to have just slipped past and eluded me. I don't have a tree, don't have any lights, don't have any stockings and around my house you wouldn't even know it's Christmas, except for the music I've been playing. I love Christmas music and this year found a few songs I really like. One of those is from the Christian group Casting Crowns. I found this song kind of just by accident, and after listening to it a few times and really enjoying it, I wanted to share it with you all.
I remember singing the song I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day but I never knew the story behind the song. It was originally written as a poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow on December 25, 1864. In the years leading up to 1864, Longfellow had dealt with quite a bit of personal tragedy including the death of his wife in a house fire on July 10, 1861. Of course this was also the same year that the American Civil War broke out (in April) The first Christmas after his wife's death in 1861, he wrote in his journal "How inexpressibly sad are the holidays." Still reeling the following Christmas in 1862 he wrote "I can make no record of these days, better leave them wrapped in silence. Perhaps someday God will give me peace. A Merry Christmas say all the children, but that is no more for me." Almost a year later he received word that his oldest son Charles had been severely wounded in one of the battles. His diary was silent that year at Christmas...I don't know exactly what happened the next year to finally free him from the anguish he had felt for several years, but finally in 1864 he penned the words "God is not dead, nor doth he sleep!"

Christmas evokes lots of different memories...for me as a child, it was certainly my favorite time of year. We grew up in an area with lots of snow, and my earliest recollections are always of a white Christmas. I remember my uncle always cutting down a beautiful tree for us, and we would usually listen to some of Mom's old records, like Nat King Cole Christmas and I think maybe Bing Crosby too. It was always lots of fun, we'd hang those old fat lights up on the tree (that I think have since been outlawed! HA) and the tinsel would get all over on the carpet. Paonia Elementary always had us make those hideous Christmas decorations, maybe a macaroni bell with a picture of us kids, or some kind of deformed clay tree that looked more like a hunched back porcupine, but I think Mom loved them just the same since we were the ones that made them. We didn't have lots of money when I was a kid, but I know Mom and Dad always made sure we had fun gifts, and I thank them for their sacrifice...I was never disappointed on Christmas morning. I remember getting a box most years from my Grandma Holyoak, and we'd dig through and find those world famous corn flake cookies she made (I remember I loved Grandma's Utah accent, she'd call them "carn flake cookies!" HA) and we'd tear through those things, which I'm pretty sure attributed to all the cavities I had, a nice mixture of Karo corn syrup and peanut butter! As I said before (I think last year), I remember Gram Langston spending nights with us, and then traveling to our cousin's houses and showing and sharing gifts. It was a magical time...then, sadly, I got older, and each year seemed less and less special, like the magic of Christmas was slipping away. It's sad actually, I miss the excitement I felt when I was a kid. Then of course, as people get even older, things happen in their lives, not always pleasant things, that seem to dent the holiday spirit even more. Family tragedies, sickness, broken relationships, etc. I just talked with my good friend the other day and his wife's mom has just been diagnosed with cancer...just a few years after her father passed away from this horrible disease. It's easy to feel the same way that Longfellow felt "how inexpressibly sad are the holidays" The last few years, I've almost just avoided the holidays all-together, just being here and alone, it seemed almost like the easiest thing to do. For some reason I feel different this year, I've tried to embrace Christmas like I did when I was young. The kids at the school are so excited for our Christmas presentation we're doing this week, and it's just been a lot of fun this year. I think this song kind of hit me this year, maybe in a way it wouldn't have in years passed. I love Christmas and it's time to enjoy it again!
I wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and I hope you are blessed to be able to enjoy this joyous time of year, whether you are alone or with someone you love. Be thankful for the blessings in your life, big and small. Life is a mystery, which can not be solved and it's good it can't be solved...otherwise what would you do then?

"Glory to God in the Highest, and on Earth peace, good will toward men"

Here's a link to the video, I hope you enjoy the song as much as I do...I think this version is excellent!

I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day