Merry Christmas!!

So I’ve been tracking Santa on the NORAD website today. Man, that guy sure gets around! In the 2 hours since I’ve started paying attention, he’s gone from China in the Northern Hemisphere, down to some French Islands off of the coast of eastern Africa in the Southern Hemisphere, back up to Pakistan in the Northern Hemisphere. I can’t help but think that he’s not taking the most efficient route, as he seems to be backtracking at times, but who am I to say? He has a lot more experience in tracking out his path than I do. A couple hundred years, at least.

I’m a big fan of Santa (well, except for these Santas) . When I was around 4 or 5, during the time that Care Bears were big, I of course wanted nothing more than a Care Bear of my own. Poor Santa, however, ran out of Care Bears before he made it to my house (the elves must have underestimated the demand that year, and since the US is the last country on his route it’s understandable that there were none left by the time he made it to Virginia, especially if he hit New England and New York first). Not one to be thwarted, however, he left me an IOU, promising that he’d deliver me my Care Bear just as soon as his stocks were replenished. I was greatly disappointed at the time, but good ol’ Santa held to his promise. Exactly six months later, on my birthday, I ran downstairs to see not one, but two Care Bears sitting on the table, with a note from Santa wishing me a happy birthday. I even remember who they were: Funshine Bear and Good Luck Bear. That’s commitment to a job if I’ve ever seen it!

Santa, however, went through some hard times. After we moved to Minnesota, he started to get forgetful. Still, as soon as he realized that he forgot to leave some intended items, he would always make the trip back to my house to drop them off. There were a couple of years where Santa kept visiting for a week after Christmas! So even with his memory problems, he still remained steadfast and true, making as many trips as needed to get the job done. If only everybody had the same devotion to their tasks that Santa has to his.

So as this Christmas season starts to wind down, gifts are finally unwrapped and turkeys eaten, and family members start to overstay their visits, remember Santa and his never-ending devotion to the Christmas spirit (even in the heat of a southern June summer). Even after Christmas ends, carry those feelings you’re feeling today and tomorrow into the new year. Even if you forget every now and then and have to make that extra effort to get it back, keep Christmas with you. Even if you end up bogged down in work and studies and daily living, remember the love, good cheer and happiness you felt back in December.

And with that final thought, I want to wish you all a very merry Christmas.

Hey, look at that, Santa’s now in Western Russia. I continue to be amazed