Back by Popular Demand
I wrote this and posted it a year ago but lately I have been getting so many hits on it that I decided to run it again. Do you remember a visit to Santa after you had been naughty? That can strike fear in the heart of the bravest kid.
Elf on the Shelf Causes Chaos
How does Santa keep track of all those children and know who has been naughty or nice? Which girls and boys deserve the latest, hottest toys? Or, which ones missed their goal and will receive only coal in their stockings? Santa’s special agent, the elf on the shelf, is the answer.
My niece’s family adopted one of these special elves to watch over her four year old son until Christmas. They named him Eyeball and he hides in various spots around the house and then magically flies to the North Pole each night to report to the big guy. However, caution must be taken around the elves and the only rule is that they must never be touched or they will lose their magic. Each elf comes with this instruction–“There’s only one rule that you have to follow so I will come back and be here tomorrow: Please do not touch me. My magic might go, and Santa won’t hear all I’ve seen or I know.”
Armed with this information young Aidan has been on his best behavior since Thanksgiving. That is, until this week. Oh yes, he was swayed by some of his preschool buddies and fell over to the naughty side. It seems he and several other boys were being typical ornery boys and were rough-housing in the bathroom. When his mother arrived at the school to pick him up the teacher said she needed to talk with her. As she disappeared into the conference room his face fell from a big grin to absolute desolation. He was BUSTED!
On the ride home he perked up and decided he wasn’t in trouble after all because the incident happened away from home where the elf couldn’t see what he had done. But when his mother reminded him that the elf was magical and knew everything, then his mood turned to real fear. He worried and fretted about what would happen.
The next morning his mother, forgetting the events of the day before, decided it was a good time to go see Santa at the mall. Nope, he didn’t want to see Santa. He wasn’t going! He drug his feet and pouted because he knew he was really in trouble now. Santa knew everything! How could he face Santa after what he had done? Once his mother figured out why he didn’t want to see Santa she had to do some fast thinking to convince him it would be alright. She told him that this Santa they were going to see wasn’t the real Santa but his brother. OK then, that made all the difference.
We adults think we are home free and don’t have to worry about an elf on the shelf spying on us but we are wrong. We actually carry that little elf on our shoulder—it is called a conscience.
Happy Holidays!
Aidan Reeves, 4 years old, after making up with Santa.
Christmas Eve is Mysterious, Magical, and Majestic
Christmas creeps up on us gradually, gains momentum, and ends with the most glorious message of all.
It begins very subtly. You may see a clerk unpacking angels in August. By Labor Day a few candles and wreaths might be spotted in the back of the store. Before Halloween some of the Christmas displays are already vying for your attention next to the pumpkins and screeching ghosts in the big box discount stores. Thanksgiving is almost nonexistent with the brilliantly lit trees and ho-ho-hoing Santas pushing Tom Turkey out of the picture.
The day after Thanksgiving, or Black Friday as the merchants are now calling it, opens the Christmas season with a bang. The race is on! Retailers are fighting to see who can get the first shopping dollars by opening earlier and earlier on Thanksgiving Day. Shoppers begin a marathon of shopping that will last for the next four weeks. In between mad dashes to the mall, people are sandwiching in holiday parties, cleaning and decorating the house, baking traditional cookies and candies, attending concerts, and wrapping packages. In addition, many are preparing for trips to be with family.
The whole month of December is a huge whirlwind. That is why Christmas Eve is my favorite night of the year. It is the moment we stop and remember what all the hectic activity is all about. All the work is done (if not, then just leave it and try better next year). The decorations are completed, the baking done, the gifts wrapped and under the tree. I enjoy the stillness of the night. The world feels at peace waiting in anticipation for the joyful gatherings of the next day. It is also a time to stop the madness and remember what the season is all about.
It is the birth of a pure and innocent child who would one day bring hope and light to a weary world. It is the time to sing Joy to the World for the Lord is come with joyful hearts. It is a time of lights and enlightenment. It is a time of family, friends, and love. It is a time to reflect in prayerful meditation the birth of our Lord.
The power of this night even stopped a war. In 1914, during World War I, the German troops put out a few Christmas trees decorated with candles and began singing Christmas carols. The British echoed the carols in their own language. Then the two sides began putting out signs saying they would stop shooting if the other side would. Word spread up and down the front lines and gradually the two sides ventured out from their trenches. They met in the middle and exchanged gifts of food, tobacco, and alcohol. The first order of business was to bury the dead then they got together and passed Christmas day playing football.
When the commanding officers heard of the impromptu truce they ordered the troops to begin shooting. Although the truce was short lived it all began because of the birth of a small child one Silent and Holy Night. A child who was sent by God with the power to perform miracles—even the miracle to end wars.
Christmas Eve is the night of mystery and magic, love and laughter, peace and prayer. My wish for you, my friend, is that you may feel the majesty of the night and carry that with you throughout the coming year.
Elf on the Shelf Causes Chaos
How does Santa keep track of all those children and know who has been naughty or nice? Which girls and boys deserve the latest, hottest toys? Or, which ones missed their goal and will receive only coal in their stockings? Santa’s special agent, the elf on the shelf, is the answer.
My niece’s family adopted one of these special elves to watch over her four year old son until Christmas. The elf hides in various spots around the house and then magically flies to the North Pole each night to report to the big guy. However, caution must be taken around the elves and the only rule is that they must never be touched or they will lose their magic. Each elf comes with this instruction–“There’s only one rule that you have to follow so I will come back and be here tomorrow: Please do not touch me. My magic might go, and Santa won’t hear all I’ve seen or I know.”
Armed with this information young Aidan has been on his best behavior since Thanksgiving. That is, until this week. Oh yes, he was swayed by some of his preschool buddies and fell over to the naughty side. It seems he and several other boys were being typical ornery boys and were rough-housing in the bathroom. When his mother arrived at the school to pick him up the teacher said she needed to talk with her. As she disappeared into the conference room his face fell from a big grin to absolute desolation. He was BUSTED!
On the ride home he perked up and decided he wasn’t in trouble after all because the incident happened away from home where the elf couldn’t see what he had done. But when his mother reminded him that the elf was magical and knew everything, then his mood turned to real fear. He worried and fretted about what would happen.
The next morning his mother, forgetting the events of the day before, decided it was a good time to go see Santa. Nope, he didn’t want to see Santa. He wasn’t going! He drug his feet and pouted because he knew he was really in trouble now. Santa knew everything! How could he face Santa after what he had done? Once his mother figured out why he didn’t want to see Santa she had to do some fast thinking to convince him it would be alright. She told him that this Santa they were going to see wasn’t the real Santa but his brother. OK then, that made all the difference.
We adults think we are home free and don’t have to worry about an elf on the shelf spying on us but we are wrong. We actually carry that little elf on our shoulder—it is called a conscience.
Happy Holidays!
Aidan making up with Santa
http://elfontheshelf.com/Home.aspx
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&list=PL0AE14815201C29B0&v=FvmOKx5-wDw
Related articles
- Carol Aebersold “The Elf on the Shelf” (eyeonbooks.com)
- The Elf on the Shelf (designtimesfour.com)
MY CALENDAR COLORING BOOK: December White
Image via Wikipedia
I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas is one of the most loved seasonal songs of all time. It is also the inspiration for this month’s coloring book. My granddaughter, Allison, suggested I color December white and I’m sure she was dreaming of several snow days off from school when she said it.
A white Christmas is dreamed of and hoped for by most children so Santa and his sleigh can come flying in for his annual Christmas deliveries. When I was a child I worried if December came with no snow until my mother reassured me that if it didn’t snow Santa would come in a helicopter.
Snow, snowmen, and Frosty the Snowman are all white, as is Santa’s beard. We know this because Clement Moore tells us so in his traditional tale Twas the Night Before Christmas. He describes Santa as a jolly elf and says, “…the beard of his chin was as white as the snow.”
But white is appropriate for this month for other reasons besides representing snow. White symbolizes purity which we see in the virgin birth of Jesus Christ. The angels who greeted the shepherds to tell them the good news of Jesus’ birth are always depicted in glowing white robes. The star that guided the wise men to the manger reflected a brilliant, intense white and is represented on the Christmas tree in a myriad of white twinkling lights.
As we settle in for “a long winter’s night” under a blanket of snow take time to enjoy the purity and innocence of the season reflected in the glow of young children’s eyes. I will let Irving Berlin describe a white Christmas—he does it much better than I can ever hope to. The words are as relevant today as they were in 1942 when he wrote it.
WHITE CHRISTMAS
I’m dreaming of a white Christmas
Just like the ones I used to know
Where the treetops glisten, and children listen
To hear sleigh bells in the snow
I’m dreaming of a white Christmas
With every Christmas card I write
May your days be merry and bright
And may all your Christmases be white
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