“Well, time passed slowly. Rudolf existed as best he could…during all that time, a strange and wonderful thing happened: Rudolf was growing up….And pretty soon he knew where he had to go: home.” -Rudolf, The Red-Nosed Reindeer New Breath. A couple of years ago I visited a friend who lives in Hawaii. He offered meRead more
“Come in and know me better, man!” -The Ghost of Christmas Present, A Christmas Carol King who? A friend of mine got married last year. Part gift and part excuse for a father-son trip, his dad took him on an excursion many people only dream of. A month or so before the wedding they hoppedRead more
Hobo: “What exactly is…is your persuasion on the Big Man, since you brought him up?” The Boy: “Well, I… I want to believe… but…” Hobo: “But you don’t want to be bamboozled. You don’t want to be led down the primrose path! You don’t want to be conned or duped. Have the wool pulled overRead more
“He’s only a kid, Harry. We can take him.” -Marv, Home Alone Bad wedding presents. Friends of mine got married about ten years ago. Amidst the many gifts they received were a couple of less desirable acquisitions. Not everyone uses the registry. If you’ve ever gotten married you can probably relate. My favourite present wasRead more
“Buddy the Elf! What’s your favourite colour?!” – Buddy, Elf Nice to meet you. I remember meeting one of my best friends for the first time in a dormitory hallway. Our rooms were adjacent, and one day we emerged from them simultaneously. We each said hi and asked where the other was from. Because weRead more
“Maybe Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store. Maybe Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.” -Dr. Seuss, How the Grinch Stole Christmas Jesus blinked. In the film Talladega Nights, Will Ferrell plays a racing driver named Ricky Bobby. Multiple times in the movie he prays to “baby Jesus”: Dear 8-pound, 6-ounce newborn infantRead more
Who are you? Who, who, who, who? -The Who, “Who Are You?” Who was Jesus, really? One of my favourite Christmas carols is by an English writer named William Chatterton Dix. The story goes that at age twenty-nine he wrote “What Child is This?” after suffering through serious illness and wrestling with deep depression. TheRead more
Last winter I walked down a street in my town and spotted something in a storefront window that gave me pause. I peered inside to take a closer look. There before me was a delightful, ten-inch figurine of Santa Claus. In his arms he cradled a soundly sleeping baby Jesus. I would have snatched it up, hadRead more