sad day at single dad laughing

so i read this blog called single dad laughing. it's usually pretty great. entertaining, thought provoking and all that. well, today he wrote a post titled lazy mans Christmas that really got me thinking. go read it before you finish this or my post probably won't make a lot of sense.

okay, did you read it? good. because i think he's wrong.  it's not about having a special someone to share everything with. if that were true i would never have any fun. i mean, i'm sure it's great to be in love and share the holiday with that one person who makes your heart go pitter-pat, but there is so much more to the holiday than that. it's about love, yes, but not strictly the romantic kind. it's about the love of God for mankind. the love of mankind for mankind. i worry that many of us (myself included) get so caught up in the hoopla of the holiday that we forget how special it really is. how wonderful it can be, what an amazing thing we are really celebrating. the birth pf a Savior. a miracle. maybe, instead of spending so much time planning and purchasing a perfect gift for the sweetheart we may, or may not have, we should spend a little more time devoted to truly celebrating the reason for the season. focus on what Christmas is really about.

 

"and on earth, peace, good will toward men." you know, despite his attachment to that (likely disgusting)  blanket, that linus kid is a pretty smart cookie. Christmas isn't about being "in love" or about gifts or any of that commercial junk. it's about Christ. it's celebrating the little miracles in your life, being grateful for all the wonderful things that you DO have (as opposed to lamenting the things that you don't), and showing your appreciation for the blessings in your life. 

oh, and that line about understanding how people feel lonely around the holidays? i don't buy it. it's like my friend darwin (not his real name) says "happiness is always a choice, never a creation of circumstance." we choose to be happy by choosing to focus on the positive and not dwell on the negative or the unpleasant. i think it's the same with loneliness. the times i feel alone are the times i choose to give in to the ofttimes fleeting tinges of loneliness. the times i feel unloved are the times i choose to focus on the fact that i am single as opposed to the fact that i am surrounded by loving family and friends.

gosh, this really wasn't the post i had intended to write. oh well. that's the way it goes sometimes.

sidenote: i really do like single dad laughing. i didn't mean to tear it apart like that. besides, his new post is far more optimistic :)