Please Mr. Grinch, come back and steal Christmas!

How many of you have seen the 1966 Christmas special by Dr. Seuss, “How the Grinch Stole Christmas?” Spoiler alert I’ve included an online version here for those who haven’t see it. Grinch movie It is a short movie that airs every Christmas and has become a cult classic. The story revolves around a green man-like character who terrorized me as a kid. It wasn’t due to the fact that his modus operandi was to destroy Christmas; it was his facial expressions. His face would contort into an ugly smile that just sent chills down my spine. The animators perfectly depicted what the lack of Christmas spirit looked like. Would the Grinch have the same look on his face if he came to steal our Christmas right now? I believe he would be confused instead for it seems as though someone beat him to it.

The reason that the Grinch wanted to steal Christmas from the residents of Whoville was because of their belief in the Christmas Spirit and it irritated him to no end. Even from far above the village, in his cavernous mountaintop home, he could hear their voices raised in song and celebration. That annoying music would grate him like fingernails scraping down a chalk board. Christmas Day was coming and it was the highlight of their year. The whole town banded together to make this holiday the most amazing celebration. They joyfully participated in the beloved traditions of tree and neighborhood decorations, feast preparation and gift giving. Even when all the glamour of the holiday was stripped away, something amazing was revealed; Whoville was a loving community. When the Grinch experienced the wonderful sense of community it caused his heart to grow two sizes; he was a changed man. I doubt very much that if our Christmas paradigms were taken from us right now he would find a loving community.

I came face to face with my Christmas being stolen with my recent struggle to find a job. When the plans were made for my mom and two boys, 18 & 20, to drive the 12 hours to my place for Christmas, it was at a time when I was working. Life was good and we were so excited to have my family here in our new home. As each month went by and there was still no job, a panic started to set in because I couldn’t financially create the Christmas traditions that my family had come to love and look forward to. I didn’t realize until that moment how much the gift giving aspect contributed to our holiday experience. I truly felt that Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without our special little traditions surrounding this experience. I put myself under a great deal of stress, for all I could think of was how disappointed my boys were going to be seeing the meager amount of gifts under the tree. Christmas was going to be ruined for I prided myself on being an awesome gift giver and equated my love for them in this gift exchange.

That also meant their love for me had to be reciprocated in the same way and I put an immense amount of pressure on them to do so. Actually they felt shamed and like failures for they could never make their mom happy with their gift giving. It got so bad on some occasions that my boys wrote “I’m Sorry” cards apologizing for letting me down. Again this year my boys swore they would finally get it right because they both had jobs and could afford a gift. They collaborated with my husband and sent him money way in advance so that the perfect gift could be purchased. Everything was perfect in their minds for this Christmas would be different; no guilt and shame would be felt. This caused stress for my hubby for he was well aware of how much disappointment I created in this area. Now the pressure was on him to help rectify the past and took his responsibility of finding me the perfect gift very seriously on behalf of my sons.

Little did I know that when the Grinch stole my Christmas, I received the greatest gift of all. Through my study of the Law of Attraction I began to question my motives in this area and discovered how narrow minded I had been. It was then that I took a closer look at this guilt-shame cycle and how it contributed to the wedge between all of the members of my family. I had deep feelings of resentment for their shortcomings in gift giving because I felt unloved. I had dismissed all the other forms of gift giving they tried with me. With the belief discovery work I have done, the wedge with my family has almost disappeared. My mother and I did not have a good relationship at all for many years, and my boys and I were headed in the same direction. That has all changed and we are all excited to spend this time together and are having a true family Christmas for the first time. Just like the Grinch, my heart has grown two sizes.

The change in the pomp and circumstance of the season caused me to look closer at the whole Christmas paradigm. We are caught in the crossfire of two parties: Santa or the birth of the Christ child lobbying to be the true representation of Christmas. Just turn on any Christmas radio station and you will see what I mean. The first song may be the iconic “Silent Night” and the next song could be “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus”. Both parties have pros and cons and we will discuss those.

As sweet as the personality of Santa is portrayed in all our beloved traditions and literature, what exactly is his purpose in our modern day Christmas experience? You would think that it would be to create some Christmas magic, good will towards men, and happiness with all that jolly ho-ho-ho-ing. Unfortunately, that doesn't seem to be the case. Our modern-day Santa image was created for brand promotion by Coca Cola and has been featured in their holiday ads since 1921. If you are interested in seeing exactly how Coca Cola re-created Santa and his elves please read this short article, it was quite enlightening. Coca Cola and Santa Before reading this article, I didn’t fully comprehend the part commercialism played in the Christmas experience. I must have tuned out the overwhelming amount of references to the Santa philosophy in the various forms of marketing and media that inundates the viewer. All those messages intimate that when you purchase their item you will create the magical Christmas you have pictured in your mind. Seriously, how can the purchase of a new vehicle be an investment in your emotional future? I bought into the belief that gifts made Christmas and put myself in financial jeopardy trying to make that happen. When the gifts couldn’t happen, I asked myself the question of what future was I really investing in? How was putting myself in financial strain really creating a future for my children? It was very short sighted of me to think that way. I also had realized that I used the gifts as a means to express my feelings for I struggled on sharing my feelings in other ways.

Looking at this truth about myself was hard to swallow and I started to realize how narrow my view of what gifts can be. Why did I cheapen the beauty and magnitude of gifts by making them something I had to buy or handmake? Why did it have to be an item that fit into a box? For me it was easier because I didn’t have to look at the beliefs that kept me miserable and shut off. I had become an excellent gift giver to compensate for my lack of emotional attachment and investment in my relationships. I told myself that I was safe in the comfort zone of my belief profile. So how do we become true givers and what does that entail? I read an amazing article of a mom that wanted to take the Santa magic and have her children make a difference in their community. She wanted to expand the concept of family from being their immediate relatives to the members of their community. She decided when he was six or seven that he was mature enough to become a Santa for others. “That Christmas it was his job to identify something a person not in their immediate family may need and then surreptitiously leave it for them.” It wasn’t about glory and self gratification for the recipient wasn’t to know; it was the true meaning of Christmas personified by enriching someone else’s life. You can read the whole story here Santa Story. When I read that story, it resonated deeply within me that I needed to change. I could do more for my fellow man by investing my time and energy into seeing what people need and doing what I could to help. The wonderful thing about this approach is that it works for any time of year, not only during the holiday season.

What saddens me the most about the people lobbying for the birth of the Christ child is the misrepresentation of Christ. In my opinion, Christ is the greatest teacher of all time. Spend any time reading the red letters in the New Testament and you will see what I mean. Even if you believe the bible is a just book of fictional stories you cannot dismiss this fact. He embodied the spirit of Christmas and walked the path that we are all called to walk everyday. He fed the poor and socialized with societal outcasts. He stood for the oppressed and challenged the beliefs of his time. Not everyone reacted the same way to that challenge, but that didn’t have anything to do with Christ. Every person who came into his presence felt his goodness. Now before I lose all you readers who have experienced the human aspect of organized religion, I implore you to hear me out. Christ himself did not have any part of what happened to you; that was a voluntary representative claiming to believe in him. Unfortunately claiming to believe in him doesn’t mean that they act like him.

What does Jesus represent? If you take a look at the behavior of religions today, it’s no wonder we are confused. The churches have lost the spirit of Christ and are now misguided. Participating in the mechanics of running a church or enforcing their doctrine has substituted for being Christ-like. If the Grinch came and removed all the trappings of these empty acts of service would there be evidence of Christ’s spirit? The beauty of Christ’s message has been lost in the battleground for religions to push their dogma and doctrine. It’s now more important to be right in what you believe instead of doing right by each other. Christ was not about that at all. His ministry focused on caring for all people no matter what their belief system or profile or life experience. He truly is the ambassador of the Christmas Spirit. His religious teachers and political leaders were so stuck in their belief profile that it was better to have him removed than consider his teachings. His focus was to make a better world for everyone, even if that encompassed the ultimate sacrifice. Isn’t it amazing that what he faced back then is similar to what we are facing today? The truth is not readily accepted and great lengths are taken to keep certain paradigms in check.

This exploration to find the true meaning of Christmas has been quite an eye opener for me. Both Christ and Santa have given me good examples of where I need to focus and change. By following those examples, I can positively impact my family, community and even the world. My first step was creating the Common Guru to help mankind in a more global sense. This meant facing some deep-seated beliefs and fears of mine, and for that I am thankful. My view of the word community has been expanded and I want to become a positive influence and I look forward to the people, situations and experiences that are coming my way so I can do exactly that. Hopefully I can give you courage to challenge your beliefs as well. Where are the areas that you can challenge yourself to be a positive influence on the world? Where can you look at a belief of yours and decide if it is truly investing in what you want? Maybe the Grinch has come and stolen something from you, too. Don’t lose heart for I believe everyone can find the gift behind the pain we all experience. Share with me your thoughts so together we can serve each other and change the world, one belief at a time.

Merry Christmas everyone!!

Who is the Common Guru? Read about us in our introductory post
Follow us on Twitter
Subscribe to our YouTube channel. Videos soon to follow.
Like us on Facebook