In case you missed it, here's part one.
There is another reason I love Christmas. It is a bit more religious in nature but I think it can apply to pretty much anyone.
In the New Testament, more specifically in the book of Luke, it talks about an angel coming to shepherds in their fields and telling them of the birth of Christ. In Luke 2:14 it says, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." Now, even if you aren't Christian or even remotely religious, this is an idea that everyone can and should embrace. We're all on this Earth together. We should show more love and kindness to our fellowmen.
In 1914, the world was in the first four months of the 'war to end all wars.' It was miserable weather. British troops were on one side and German troops on the other, and in between was no man's land. Yet on Christmas Eve, both sides held a cease fire so they could celebrate Christmas. The British heard a German shout, "A happy Christmas to you Englishmen!" The Germans soon heard the British reply, "Same to you, Fritz, but dinna o'er eat yourself wi' they sausages!" In other places, the two sides exchanged Christmas carols. You can read the account yourself here. There were even places where the two sides would meet in the middle of no man's land! They would exchange cigarettes or souvenirs. They didn't speak each other's language but they would try to communicate in anyway they could. One witness said, "Here we were laughing and chatting to men whom only a few hours before we were trying to kill!" I'll be the first to admit, I am pretty cynical and pessimistic, but the story of the Christmas Truce, as it came to be known, helps me to believe that the idea of Peace on Earth, Good Will to Men can happen.
Sometimes, I hear stories of modern day "good Samaritans" who went out of their way to help another, even if it meant risking their own life like this man here. Or the story of the man who stopped an extremist church from burning a Quran. I also sometimes see simple acts of charity such as a young man stopping to help a woman who had dropped a bunch of papers at school or a guy pulling over and getting out of his car to help push a stalled car out of an intersection. All of these stories and firsthand accounts help me believe that there are good people out there who are willing to put aside their differences or ignore their own schedules & agendas, and just help their fellowmen. When we think about it, we're all in this together. We can make things really difficult for each other or we can help make things easier.
That is why I love Christmas. It seems like people decide to think of others and promote peace. Even if it's just once a year, it's a start. My previous Christmas post mentioned a song by Reliant K. There's another one by them called, "Boxing Day." It has a line that says, "But just for one day we all came together. We showed the whole world that we know how to love." If we can do that and keep doing that even after Christmas is over, I think this world is going to be okay.
Love you.
Mean it.
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