Ronald Kok, Our Christmas Stockings 2014, Colored pencil drawing

“At Christmas
A man is at his finest towards the finish of the year;
He is almost what he should be when the Christmas season’s here;
Then he’s thinking more of others than he’s thought the months before,
And the laughter of his children is a joy worth toiling for.
He is less a selfish creature than at any other time;
When the Christmas spirit rules him he comes close to the sublime.”
― Edgar A. Guest

Christmas Day is creeping ever closer. Each of us, truth be told, is somewhere on the Scrooge-to-Will-Ferrell’s-Elf scale when it comes to our feelings about the holiday.  More than any other celebration in the Western world, it brings out the greatest melange of joy, sadness, nostalgia, regret, love, bitterness, peace and conflict. For some, it is indeed the most wonderful time of the year, for others – “Bah! Humbug!”

Today I share an assortment of quotes that include the sublime, the ridiculous, the spiritual, the carnal, the profound and the funny takes on Christmas. Some of these had me laughing out loud, others forced me to think about important things. That, perhaps, sums up my take on Christmas. Enjoy.

“One can never have enough socks,” said Dumbledore. “Another Christmas has come and gone and I didn’t get a single pair. People will insist on giving me books.” ― J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

“The main reason Santa is so jolly is because he knows where all the bad girls live.”
― George Carlin

CALVIN: “This whole Santa Claus thing just doesn’t make sense. Why all the secrecy? Why all the mystery? If the guy exists why doesn’t he ever show himself and prove it?
And if he doesn’t exist what’s the meaning of all this?
HOBBES: “I dunno. Isn’t this a religious holiday?”
CALVIN: “Yeah, but actually, I’ve got the same questions about God.”
― Bill Watterson, Calvin and Hobbes

“Want to keep Christ in Christmas? Feed the hungry, clothe the naked, forgive the guilty, welcome the unwanted, care for the ill, love your enemies, and do unto others as you would have done unto you.”
― Steve Maraboli, Unapologetically You

“Our hearts grow tender with childhood memories and love of kindred, and we are better throughout the year for having, in spirit, become a child again at Christmastime.”
― Laura Ingalls Wilder

“In the old days, it was not called the Holiday Season; the Christians called it ‘Christmas’ and went to church; the Jews called it ‘Hanukkah’ and went to synagogue; the atheists went to parties and drank. People passing each other on the street would say ‘Merry Christmas!’ or ‘Happy Hanukkah!’ or (to the atheists) ‘Look out for the wall!”
― Dave Barry

“The reality of loving God is loving him like he’s a Superhero who actually saved you from stuff rather than a Santa Claus who merely gave you some stuff.”
― Criss Jami, Killosophy

“The Supreme Court has ruled that they cannot have a nativity scene in Washington, D.C. This wasn’t for any religious reasons. They couldn’t find three wise men and a virgin.” ― Jay Leno

“Christmas is not a time nor a season, but a state of mind. To cherish peace and goodwill, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas.”
― Calvin Coolidge

“Yet as I read the birth stories about Jesus I cannot help but conclude that though the world may be tilted toward the rich and powerful, God is tilted toward the underdog.” ― Philip Yancey

“Money’s scarce
Times are hard
Here’s your f#*king
Xmas card”
― Phyllis Diller

“What kind of Christmas present would Jesus ask Santa for?”
― Salman Rushdie, Fury

“Christmas it seems to me is a necessary festival; we require a season when we can regret all the flaws in our human relationships: it is the feast of failure, sad but consoling.”
― Graham Greene, Travels With My Aunt

“Were I a philosopher, I should write a philosophy of toys, showing that nothing else in life need to be taken seriously, and that Christmas Day in the company of children is one of the few occasions on which men become entirely alive.”
― Robert Lynd

“Christmas is built upon a beautiful and intentional paradox; that the birth of the homeless should be celebrated in every home.”
― G.K. Chesterton, Brave New Family

“Ever since the Christmas of ’53, I have felt that the yuletide is a special hell for those families who have suffered any loss or who must admit to any imperfection; the so-called spirit of giving can be as greedy as receiving–Christmas is our time to be aware of what we lack, of who’s not home.”
― John Irving, A Prayer for Owen Meany

“It struck him that how you spent Christmas was a message to the world about where you were in life, some indication of how deep a hole you had managed to burrow for yourself.”  ― Nick Hornby, About a Boy

“O Christmas Sun! What holy task is thine!
To fold a world in the embrace of God!”
― Guy Wetmore Carryl

“If your Birthday is on Christmas day and you’re not Jesus, you should start telling people your birthday is on June 9 or something. Just read up on the traits of a Gemini. Suddenly you’re a multitasker who loves the color yellow. Because not only do you get stuck with the combo gift, you get the combo song. “We wish you a merry Christmas – and happy birthday, Terry – we wish you a merry Christmas – happy birthday, Terry – we wish you a merry Christmas and a happy New Ye – Birthday, Terry!”
― Ellen DeGeneres, Seriously… I’m Kidding

“I wish we could put up some of the Christmas spirit in jars and open a jar of it every month.” ― Harlan Miller

“To perceive Christmas through its wrapping becomes more difficult with every year.”
― E.B. White

“Except the Christ be born again tonight
In dreams of all men, saints and sons of shame,
The world will never see his kingdom bright.”
― Vachel Lindsay

“There has been only one Christmas — the rest are anniversaries.”
― W.J. Cameron