Christmas Gifts
In the penultimate scene of Dr. Seuss‘ 1957 classic, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, the Grinch stands, feet freezing in the snow, to hear the anguished cries of the present-less (and presumed Christmas-less) Whos down in Who-ville.
Instead, to his surprise, he heard their thankful singing rise up over the snow.
And, he was puzzled.
It came without ribbons! It came without tags!
It came without packages, boxes, or bags!’
He puzzled and puzzled till his puzzler was sore.
Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before.
Maybe Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store.
Maybe Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more!
The older I become, the more I come to understand how true this is. The following video sums it up perfectly.
Dec 24, 2014 17:50
When I was a kid, I just thought the story of the Grinch was funny and odd. Now that I’m a bit older, I actually get choked up by the part of the script that you quoted. Maybe it’s because of little Cindy Lou Who… /p>>
Thanks for sharing both the excerpt and the video clip–and Happy Christmas.
Dec 30, 2014 11:59
Clearly, our perspectives change as we grow older, as well. To a child, it’s a fun story with much silliness. To an adult, the real underlying meaning becomes apparent. So, I guess the question is: did the perspective change because we gained something, lost something or a little of both?
Jan 08, 2015 20:32
I agree as well. I must admit that my favorite thing about Christmas is spending time with my family. Good food, good conversation, and the kids running around. The older I get the more I realize that I don’t really need more “stuff” but experiences and memories.