Greetings everyone and welcome to
The magical Mystery Blog.
Just yesterday was the start of
December and with it came the onslaught of holiday movies. Like a cluster of
corniness and cheer, the Christmas flicks appeared on various television
stations. One channel in particular, ABC Family, started its 25 Days of
Christmas yesterday. Tonight, that same
channel has aired two Christmas specials that sent my back to my childhood
within sixty minutes. Some of you are
probably familiar with these shorts entitled Winnie the Pooh and Christmas Too and Mickey’s Christmas Carol. Followed by these two specials, ABC
pushed me even farther into the past with its traditional screening of A Charlie Brown Christmas.
While these three specials are produced
with different plots, they share a few things in common. These concepts are
tied in with the holidays and reveal the ideals of Christmas to audiences
everywhere.
Christmas Doesn't Have One Meaning
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| wikipedia.com Ooooooooooooh....shiny.... |
Winnie
the Pooh and Christmas Too tells the story of Pooh bear believing he failed
to deliver his friends’ letters to Santa. To make up for his actions, he
dresses up as Santa, and travels throughout the Hundred Acre Wood delivering
presents to his friends. In the end, he receives a present from Santa but
realizes that he doesn't need gifts for Christmas. Rather, he wants his friends
and nothing else because presents are worth nothing when compared to his many
friendships.
Mickey’s
Christmas Carol retells the Charles Dickens classic. In doing so, it shows
what happens if you do not seize the day and be kind towards others, regardless
of how much heartbreak and loneliness you’ve encountered in the past. Life has
its challenges, some more terrible than others, and yes, they do shape a
person. While Scrooge was molded for the worse, he should have attempted to see
things in a different light, and Christmas is just the joyous season to bring
out the best in a person. This special shows that Christmas is a wondrous time
of the year to embrace the positive spirit and share the goodness with others,
just as Scrooge does when he awakens.
A
Charlie Brown Christmas shows a more religious meaning of Christmas. This
is shown by the iconic scene of Linus explaining the birth of Jesus in
Bethlehem and how joy is brought unto the world. This trumps Charlie’s idea of
how Christmas is wrapped up in commercialism and presents to him a new meaning:
that Christmas is a time of joy and celebration.
Gifts Aren't Everything
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| whychristmas.com |
In the three specials, we see the
characters interact with their friends, and sometimes bestow gifts to each
other. In the Winnie the Pooh special,
we see Pooh bear go out of his way to be “Santa” to fulfill his friends’
Christmas lists. The following day, Christopher Robin comes to them, giving
them gifts from Santa himself. While the gang enjoys the presents, it is
Christopher Robin and Pooh who show us in one mere moment that gifts don’t make
up everything. Rather, it is the people who you spend it with that make the
holiday magical.
In Mickey’s Christmas Carol we witness Scrooge turning over a new leaf
and visiting the Cratchit’s house. The
only gift in this scene is where he tells a boy to buy the fattest goose and
deliver it to the Cratchit’s house. Once he arrives at the house, we see him
present his transformed self to his coworker’s family, and engage in Christmas
dinner with them. It is implied that the goose is delivered but the meaning of
spending time with friends and family dominates the scene.
Lastly, in A Charlie Brown Christmas we see no gift distribution whatsoever.
Rather, we see Charlie Brown faced with the ideals of consumerism that’s often
featured during the holidays. By the end of the special, we see that he has
overcome the commercialism and embraced a new meaning of Christmas, where gifts
are nothing when compared to the joy Christmas gives us all.
It Really is the Most Wonderful Time
of the Year
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| wikipedia.com Oooooooooh.....more shiny.... |
These three specials show events and
items associated with Christmas: the decorating of the Christmas tree, falling
snow, lavish holiday parties, and other scenes of merriment. These wonderful
experiences cannot be replicated any other time throughout the year because
they do not embody the wonderment of Christmas. Christmas emits a certain type
of warmth that cannot be felt by the summer sun or experienced by a kiss.
Christmas radiates a special type of feeling when the lights are illuminated,
like the Christmas tree in A Charlie
Brown Christmas. This particular holiday also tends to bring out the best
in people, even if it’s something small like donating to Toys for Tots, or
sharing a meal like Scrooge in Mickey’s
Christmas Carol. Lastly, this time of the year also shows us that sometimes
we don’t need material items to make each other smile. Rather the company of
good friends and family makes our holiday magical, just like Winnie the Pooh and Christmas Too.
These elements culminate a feeling
and experiences that no other holiday can share. Christmas is a wonderful day of the year
where all the winter warmth comes together and embraces you in a tight,
comforting hug. The moments shared especially during this time of the year are
treasured away in your mind for many years to come.
What Christmas special taught you
something about the holidays? Feel free to leave your thoughts below and as
always, feedback and followers are welcomed.
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