Not seen and not heard

For many families it is often a high stress time as well. Parents may argue about how much they are going to spend this year for gifts, how they are going to manage the party schedule and when the visit to the rest of the family will be. Small children are often pulled in rapid succession from one activity to another so that they get in the ‘spirit’ of Christmas.

In many churches, there is the frantic pace of preparing for ‘The Christmas Program,’ where non-stop pressure is placed upon the adults who work with the children to have another program this year. The children often go numbly through the rehearsals, having been told many times to ‘please sit down and be quiet.’ The youth hang around the edge of the practice room wishing they didn’t have to do this program with the small kids, again.

When I was growing up I was told on many occasions (maybe it was because I was loud) that children should be seen but not heard except, of course, in the Christmas Program, when we were told to talk ‘real loud’ so everyone could hear.

I suspect most of us have lived through these moments of Christmas preparations only to collapse after Christmas, thanking God it is over again for another year. We make a vow to ourselves, ‘We’re never going TO DO Christmas like that again.’

I suspect we all need to take a deep breath and sit back for a moment and reflect about what is about to take place yet another year. I wonder what Jesus would like us to do?

There are lots of folks in our congregations for whom Christmas is a very lonely time. They may be visited on an evening when the Christmas carolers come by to sing, which is good. They may have a visit from a relative for a few hours, which is good. But much of the time they see the joyous ads on TV about all the Christmas activities, and they know and feel that they are the forgotten ones. They may be living in a retirement home where Christmas tinsel is hung in the halls and a decorated tree stands in the dining room. They may be living in their own home or apartment remembering good times past, but now they are alone and feel forgotten. Many of these folks will never complain or say anything about their feelings of loneliness because they don’t want to be a burden on anyone. They say they understand how busy everyone one is and not to worry about them. They will be OK. For many of these saints of the church, their families live a long distance away, so it is not possible for them to have many visits.

I wonder what would happen if the children received a gift of another grandpa or another grandma for a year. What if, at the Christmas program this year, families would receive the gift of the name of an older person with whom they would be able to talk regularly throughout the year. They could visit their gift in person and chat with them on the phone. Perhaps even the children could invite the person over to the house now and then to play together.

I think the old saying about children being seen but not heard is wrong. I think children should be seen and heard for all the joy they bring into people’s lives. Give a gift of wholesome joy and peace this year. Let this be a Merry Christmas and a whole new year of joy for the folks who yearn to be seen and heard.