LOVE IS AN ACTION VERB

Every Saturday in December, we will share a Beers at the Nifty “Christmas classic”. Today’s post originally ran 12/25/2022.

Love is an action verb.

It’s also a bit like kudzu – it’s all around us – with multiple definitions, but perhaps my favorite:

“To love is to will the good of another”.

Definition courtesy of St. Thomas Aquinas, succinctly capturing the spirit of the Christmas season.

My Mother claimed Aquinas also said “Never bet against Notre Dame”, but that was Bing Crosby.

There are countless variations of love: We love our spouse, children, friends, the world at large, and hopefully ourselves, but the commonality across those variations is putting others ahead of ourselves – to will their good.

For Christians, Easter the most important day – through Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice, death was vanquished (somewhere my 4^th grade religion teacher, Sister Mary Soulcrusher, is nodding proudly), but Christmas a close second.

It’s the most visible display of His love for the world, sending His son to be born of this earth.

Ultimately, the ‘reason for the season’ is love – but that’s easily forgotten.

We fixate on the commercial side of Christmas, which can be overwhelming, but the plus side of ‘gift mania’ is the generosity it embodies – the best gifts being those that tell another how well we understand and love them.

So much of Christmas joy is anticipation – particularly for kids, but the season can be incredibly hectic – particularly for adults; and as we’ve learned from Hallmark movies, not everyone loves Christmas.

But they’ll come around, won’t they? And in Hallmark movie fashion, we’ll convince the jaded developer to build around the Christmas shop!

So, you can either feel pressured by all there is to do, or drink in all the activity.

We choose to drink it all in!

Our season kicks off by selecting our tree – My Captor and I aren’t too picky, evaluating 3-4 before choosing.

We quickly bypass certain trees: the ‘Charlie Brown’ – lovable, but too scrawny, the ‘Lucy/Peppermint Patty’ – big ones too much in our face, the ‘Pigpen’ – too many needles, opting for the ‘Linus’ – simple, unassuming, just right.

In a beach twist, our tree ‘stand’ is a sand filled bucket. Just like the Wise Men recommended to Mary and Joseph.

From there the incredible baking and gift selection commence. For the latter, Amazon has replaced the Sears Catalog – debate amongst yourselves if that’s a good thing…

Our family tradition also includes our card – photos carefully chosen, and the letter eventually written, to the delight of several.  

We love the buildup – but our old friend Eeyore, not so much.

Eeyore chooses to fixate on: The expense, the pressure to find the ‘right’ gift, it “starts earlier every year” – the commercial downsides of the season.

He complains the ‘donkey gifts’ section at Amazon is uninspiring – there used to be great gifts in the Sears catalog!

No wonder Eeyore famously said “I was so upset, I forgot to be happy”.

We all have a touch of Eeyore in us, but let’s resolve to banish our Inner Eeyore!

There is too much to love, and be grateful for, to be anything but excited about Christmas.

It helps to remember what Christmas really means: Gratitude for the ultimate gift, and the love of family and friends!

And while much of our anticipation is for the gift exchange, even Eeyore knows that family is the greatest gift, and the best Christmas the one celebrated with loved ones.

I leave you with Winnie the Pooh’s words of wisdom: “If there ever comes a day when we can’t be together, keep me in your heart. I’ll be there forever”.

Merry Christmas!

For 268 more posts like this –each with a wish for more Christmas– go to beersatthenifty.com. Your phone will display every post, and you can waste an hour or two.

ENHANCE YOUR ENJOYMENT OF THIS POST, PAIR IT WITH THE FOLLOWING ‘AGING HIPSTER MUSIC’:

Today’s selections are both ‘All the Best’, the original by John Prine and a great cover by My Morning Jacket. Both added to the BATN playlist.