Its Christmas time! There is something magical about it no matter how old you get. Is it Santa? Jesus? Presents? Winter? I was thinking about why its special and three things in the last 24 hours gave me the answer.
1) Everyone at Walmart last night was unusually friendly. Strangers walked by and smiled and said hi like 4 times! An drabby old man, a little Indian guy, a yuppy Indian guy (don't think he was gay either), and... someone else. And people were pleasant. The cashier was funny and engaging. Wall-E was on in the electronics section a group of like 4 randoms including me stopped to watch for 5+ minutes. It all made me happy!
2) Read this article in NY Times.
"Your happiness depends not just on your choices and actions, but also on the choices and actions of people you don't even know who are one, two and three degrees removed from you," said Dr. Nicholas Christakis, a physician and social scientist at Harvard Medical School and an author of the study, to be published Friday in BMJ, a British journal. "There's kind of an emotional quiet riot that occurs and takes on a life of its own, that people themselves may be unaware of. Emotions have a collective existence - they are not just an individual phenomenon."
Kind of comforting/ Potentially creepy! But, fear not...
"Sadness was transmitted the same way, but not as reliably as happiness. Professor Cacioppo believes that reflects an evolutionary tendency to 'select into circumstances that allow us to stay in a good mood.'"
Thank goodness.
3) This directly answers the initial question of where the Christmas season derives its magic. Read this talk about Christmas by President Monson (might have gotten choked up).
"President David O. McKay declared: 'True happiness comes only by making others happy-the practical application of the Savior's doctrine of losing one's life to gain it. In short, the Christans spirit is the Christ spirit, that makes our hearts glow in brotherly love and friendship and prompts us to kind deeds of service.'
"'It is the spirit of the gospel of Jesus Christ, obedience to which will bring 'peace on earth,' because it means-good will toward all men.'
"Giving, not getting, brings to full bloom the Christmas spirit. Enemies are forgiven, friends remembered, and God obeyed. The spirit of Christmas illuminates the picture window of the soul, and we look out upon the world's busy life and become more in
terested in people than things. To catch the real meaning of the 'spirit of Christmas,' we need only drop the last syllable, and it becomes the 'Spirit of Christ.'"
So what is that feeling? Maybe its the combined goodwill of everyone around thinking more unselfishly than usual. Its the Spirit of Christ in greater potency. Get out and spread the cheer! Go to Wal-mart if you must.
Happy Holidays!
2 comments:
Hey! What is up with RT?
Love the chipper time of year. That's rare for Wal-mart peeps to be friendly. Usually they run me over with their over-filled carts and 5 kids.
Geez how long has it been since we saw you? crazy.
Hey, you're right. guestmusings.blogspot.com
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