We can still have a Dickens of a Christmas as we get older

Charles Dickens, much than immoderate writer earlier oregon since, taught the satellite however to rejoice astatine Christmas. Yet among his galore beloved works is simply a abbreviated effort — present mostly forgotten — successful which helium reflected not connected Christmas arsenic children cognize it, but connected Christmas arsenic it appears to america aft years person passed and beingness has grown much complicated. With apologies for daring to tamper with a classic, I person taken large liberty successful revising Dickens’ sentiments for a modern audience, convinced that they are arsenic applicable contiguous arsenic erstwhile helium archetypal penned them, successful the 1850s. 

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As we turn older, Christmas becomes little astir what we person and much astir who and what we welcome. 

We invited people, of people — family, friends, neighbors and adjacent the occasional alien who finds himself astatine our table. But Christmas asks america to invited overmuch much than that. Indeed, Christmas, itself, is an enactment of hospitality — not simply of home, but of soul. 

When we were young, the joyousness of Christmas felt elemental and complete. We had everything we wanted astir the Christmas tree. There was nary request to invited thing else. The days were awash successful the clear, bracing airy of morning, the aboriginal wide unfastened with possibilities and a seeming eternity of clip stretched retired earlier us. 

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As we age, we spot however the vacation of Christmas changes. (iStock)

But inevitably beingness grew much superior — and much filled with shadows. There were dreams we erstwhile obsessed implicit that ne'er came to pass. A beingness we imagined we would live. A idiosyncratic we thought we would become. A matrimony we hoped for that didn’t instrumentality spot — oregon 1 that didn’t last. A vocation that ne'er materialized. Children who ne'er arrived. Paths connected the horizon, gleaming with promise, that turned retired not to beryllium ours. 

Most of the year, we support these bittersweet thoughts locked away. But astatine Christmas, they sound mildly astatine the door. And Christmas asks america to fto them in.

Not to mourn them bitterly. Not to unreal they ne'er mattered. But to invitation them to beryllium with america astir the Christmas tree, beneath the brushed lights, among acquainted voices. These aged dreams bash not travel to reproach us. They travel to punctual america that we erstwhile hoped profoundly — and that hoping profoundly was ne'er foolish, but alternatively a motion of being vibrantly alive. 

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Then determination are the radical we person loved and mislaid — not to death, but to time, misunderstanding, region and estrangement. Christmas does not licence the convenient prevarication that they nary longer matter. It insists, graciously but firmly, that emotion erstwhile fixed someway remains existent forever.  

If conscience allows and wounds person not made it impossible, we invited astatine slightest the representation of these aged loves to beryllium softly with america astir the Christmas tree.

Then determination are those bittersweet shades from the metropolis of the dead. Those who erstwhile sat astatine our table, who laughed successful our homes, who steadied america erstwhile we were tiny oregon walked beside america erstwhile we were afraid. They instrumentality now, not arsenic ghosts to frighten us, but arsenic spiritual presences to bless us. They instrumentality their places astir the Christmas tree, not demanding tears, but offering gratitude — for the emotion we gave and inactive springiness to them, and for not being forgotten. 

And past determination are our enemies. 

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As we turn older, the satellite seems to disagreement much easy and, yes, much violently. Differences harden. Words go weapons. People we erstwhile admired — oregon astatine slightest understood — go symbols of everything we deliberation is incorrect with the world. Christmas enters this battlefield and asks thing unreasonable: that we invited adjacent those who reason us.

If conscience allows and wounds person not made it impossible, we invited astatine slightest the representation of these aged loves to beryllium softly with america astir the Christmas tree.

Not by surrendering truth. Not by excusing cruelty, ignorance and stupidity. But by remembering that quality beings are not solely the arguments they marque oregon the positions they hold. Christmas reminds america that each idiosyncratic — adjacent the 1 who angers america astir — is unique, precious, unrepeatable and made successful the representation and likeness of God. It reminds america that each quality being was erstwhile a small child, erstwhile held successful someone’s arms, erstwhile profoundly hoped for. 

Peace, Christmas tells us, is not the lack of condemnation oregon adjacent vigorous argument, but alternatively the beingness of mercy successful the midst of "the bully fight." 

Children, of course, should ever stay astatine the bosom of Christmas. We spot them gathered astir the tree: small boys and girls with agleam eyes, shining faces, and tousled curls, absorbed successful wonder. But if we let ourselves a infinitesimal of reverent imagination, we mightiness spot that they are not unsocial — that their angels basal adjacent them, smiling, hands connected their shoulders, invisible but attentive, rejoicing not lone successful their contiguous beauty, but successful what they are becoming.

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For these children are growing. 

They volition person dreams conscionable arsenic fierce arsenic ours erstwhile were. They volition pursuit ambitions conscionable arsenic real, acquisition adventures conscionable arsenic glorious, consciousness joys conscionable arsenic heart-stopping, and sorrows conscionable arsenic heavy. Christmas asks america to beryllium blessed that the satellite is not ending with us; blessed that younker volition beryllium reborn, again and again, agelong aft our ain stories are finished. 

And finally, too these children and their angels, Christmas calls america to invitation different boys and girls into our homes, arsenic well: the children we erstwhile were; the children who grew up excessively quickly; the children we loved instinctively but could not support arsenic we wished. They stitchery successful the glow of the Christmas tree, too, drawn by its committedness that innocence is not an illusion, and wonderment not a lie.

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Indeed, Christmas tells america that puerility is not thing we suffer — for thing is ever mislaid with God. It is thing we are meant to recover, tempered by sorrow, strengthened by emotion and guided by faith. 

Christmas does not necessitate america to person each the analyzable problems of our beingness resolved. It does not importune that our lives beryllium escaped from irritation, sadness, suffering and stress. It simply invites america to travel successful retired of the acold and "rest a while" successful the beingness of thing holy. Those are, aft all, the words spoken by the One whose day we observe connected Christmas Day.

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And so, this Christmas, we invited everything and everyone to instrumentality their spot beside america astir the Christmas tree. 

We invited the past without bitterness.  We invited the dormant without despair.  We invited aged dreams without disappointment.

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We invited enemies without surrender.  We invited children — seen and unseen — with gratitude. 

And successful doing so, we observe that Christmas has been welcoming america each along; welcoming america into a bid that transcends each understanding, and into the abiding and boundless joyousness of a Child laid successful a manger.