Christmas is filled with the ghosts of Christmas past - those missing from the table for a myriad of reasons. Also Traditions, the spectre of things you started as a child and for some reason continue, even though the reason for doing so may no longer be ncessary, it's just 'what you do' at Christmas.
People often reach out to people they don't see throughout the year, send cards to people that were once a much bigger part of your life, or were important and you aren't quite ready to let them go unrecognised or appreciated.
So Charles Dickens was on to something universal about Christmas, even if it wasn't exactly his point.
Do you recognise the ghosts of Christmas past in your celebrations and traditions? Do you have some '
Christmas future arriving this year, with newly married kids or babies now to be accomodated?
I guess the most important thing at Christmas is to anchor ourselves in the present, however it might appear. Enjoy time with friends and family, make the most of time on your own, do whatever you need to get through a difficult time if it's not exactly a festive time for you.
Lydia, what the Dickens are you talking about? Too bleak for this theme!
Okay, okay, a little music.
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I talked about my favourite Christmas carols here, and this crazy Jul song that makes me laugh and laugh. Be warned - it's pretty irreverant and some people might be offended. Definitely not suitable for work. Some clips from the singalong Christmas show I went to are here.
The Krampus were covered here....so I leave you with a song I've loved and played at Christmas since I was a kid.
Merry Christmas to you all!
I do enjoy some of the alternative songs and themes for the festive period.
ReplyDeleteIt's always great to have you join us for Tell Us About Lydia, you bring a fabulous perspective in your posts!
ReplyDeleteI do remember the Ramones, they I think were around in the 1970s? but I use to listen to them as a teenager in the 1980s. Also I've changed my blog name it's here at https://blue-day3.blogspot.com/
ReplyDeleteToday I finally managed to participate in your Christmas linkup again. I hope you're doing well!
ReplyDeleteWe heard about the terrible attack at Bondi Beach in Sydney... We're so shocked, I'm speechless...
Nevertheless, my dear: Let's not let those who hate get us down.
Hugs, warmest regards and a time filled with light 🕯️✨❣️, Traude
https://rostrose.blogspot.com/2025/12/reisebericht-2025-niagara-falls.html
The whole city seems to be pretty upset - shocked and angry. Though there is a sort of nice unity forming - the candles in the windows, so many people giving blood they're turning them away and booking them in days later. The push to tighten our gun laws. But everyone knows someone that was there, or could have been there. Sydney people turn up to everything - we all go to the Eid markets and Lunar New Year celebrations - so it wasn't just Jewish people there (not taking away from the fact it was 100% an antisemetic attack - which is completely f***ed up). I hope maybe we'll also be a little less 'free speech' on the Nazi protests now.
DeleteSorry, I'm still a little angry nad confused - in shock, I guess.
DeleteAnything other than a shock and feeling angry would be surprising... Yes, stricter gun laws and banning Nazi demonstrations would be an important first step... I'm glad that such terrible things also bring out the good in people!
DeleteI’m glad to see your government so responsive. As an American I am jealous
DeleteHi Lydia, just the decorations alone on my Xmas tree are reminders of Christmas's past. A decoration I now have that used to be Mum & Dad's, decorations the kids made at kindy or preschool, a decoration I picked up on a trip somewhere etc. Christmas was the same for a long time and then it changed a lot and now it's change an extreme lot so it's a reminder to live in the now, soak it all up, cos change is inevitable. Hope to see you over at the blog this week for the final week! Thanks for linking up for the final #WWWhimsy of 2025 (and who knows what will happen next year) Have a wonderful Christmas and catch up with you in the new year! xo
ReplyDeleteChristmas has its series of changes because "family" and "places" and times change. We are hosting this year....for the first time in around 10 years. I have a much simpler approach after being unwell this year and have learned to 'let go' of older and more rigid ideas. May your Christmas be merry and bright. Denyse x
ReplyDeleteOh I really like where you went with this prompt! It is so true that Christmas changes just a bit each year as family changes occur.
ReplyDeleteChristmas has definitely changed for me over the last few years. This year, I passed the torch to my daughter as far as planning the family get together. It's always a bit sad to me when the festivities are over...we plan, we bake, we shop...and then it's done. Maybe, that's what Dickens was about? The fleeting sense of the spirit of Christmas?
ReplyDeletehttps://marshainthemiddle.com/
If there is ever a time to put our differences aside and celebrate, it is Christmas time. Have a very Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year.
ReplyDeleteChristmas is a time for past, present, and future to mingle together. I keep traditions alive thanks to Christmases past and that is often some of my most fondest memories of either my childhood or that of my children. It was sweet and easy days. Christmas present makes me grateful for the moment I live and with whom I share my life with. Then there's Christmas future, all of the what's to come leaves the mind ponder and plan. Thanks for enlightening us with your delightful post and music. Have a joyful, blessed Christmas Lydia! xo
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