Songs, The Baboon Congress, Words

christmastime oh christmastime

47 Comments

Today’s post comes from tim

in the words of the old charlie brown tune.

christmastime oh christmastime

how i wish that you were mine

every year you come around

and i always feel the same

christmastime oh christmastime

im so glad that you are mine

every year all over town

we all do sing your name

the feeling it inspires is hopeful

everyone agrees

the warmth and love that it invokes

is what impresses me

no need wondering why it is

lets just say our thanks

in a world where too much stinks

christmas love does rank

if we all enjoy this time

all december through

maybe we can brace ourselves

the end will be too soon

 

how can you remain in the moment

 

 

47 thoughts on “christmastime oh christmastime”

  1. Sometimes it takes a conscious effort to pause and not fret about 3 days from now or a year from now or what I should be doing even in an hour. Harder to do at work than at home – at home I can look out my dining room window and see a lot that is good in this world: kids delighted to have a bit of snow to play in, neighbors out walking their dogs, dried stalks of prairie grasses waiting for spring (in the rain garden). It’s a view that can be very “centering” for lack of a better word. It also allows me to ignore the “here and now” of my very messy dining room table. 🙂

    Liked by 7 people

    Reply

    1. I think dining room tables were invented to be messy…open invitation…or, in my case, applies to anything that is horizontal…and wide enough.

      Liked by 5 people

      Reply

  4. Morning all. I used to be tied to my lists, going over the edge to make sure every single thing got done. Then about 25 years ago I was thinking about my job (which I love) and said out loud “but we’re not curing cancer here.” And then I realized that if I did kill myself finishing a list, that wouldn’t cure cancer either. From there it was a pretty short step to “I’m only going to do what I want, not what I should.” This has been very freeing. Now I still take on too much, but it’s out of desire, not out of guilt and this leaves me able to really enjoy things as they come!

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply

    1. bingo

      the dali lhama said at a thing i saw him at
      what you should strive for is to make your life happy
      money doesnt do it. things dont do it.
      figure out what does and reach for that

      i forget often but i try to remember and hope to get it to default stage sometime

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

        1. Not especially. I’m just saying that feeling a little more in control of how I end up spending my time would be a luxury. When you are “in the moment” you are always reacting to something.

          Liked by 2 people

        2. that is why i offer the idea (i am better at offering than following my own advice) of putting an x on your calendar for an appointment with yourself. to go to the back roo to contemplate your navel may be what you choose but it is a real live appointment . if something “in the moment ” wants to demand that you respond. yo can say “i have an appointment” and you are right.
          like vs says ” we are not curing cancer”

          Like

    2. I read something recently that posited that the “live in the moment” mindset came from a place of privilege. That it is something that works in several not-as-intended ways if your moment is riding a subway to get to your second or third job and your toddler is screeching because they are hungry or tired or both. If your “moment” includes systemic racism oe sexism or classism or (fill in the blank bias) it’s probably better to be in a place of future hope vs in the here and now. So Bill, there is something to your statement.

      Liked by 7 people

      Reply

  6. Rise and Shine Baboons!

    Apparently this question itself causes me to be mindful. And blank. Since I first read it this morning I have been mindfully pondering it, and my mind has gone blank. There are very few moments in which my mind is blank. Generally it is full of “Look at that shiny thing over there,” or “I just had this great idea for a widget,” or “What was Grandma thinking when she gave Mary Jane a Christmas present and made me watch her open it when I did not get ANYTHING?–I mean really!”

    Liked by 6 people

    Reply

      2. I think the exhortation to live in the moment means, mostly, don’t get trapped in a mindset that your life will begin at some future date when you have more money and a better job and a nicer place to live. You have to live in the life you have now, imperfections and all.

        Liked by 3 people

        Reply

  8. Nice verses, tim. I was going to get cards out right after Thanksgiving since we’ve changed address. Didn’t happen – so iinstead of sitting down and cranking out Christmas cards in 1 (or 2) big sessions, I’m responding to them as they arrive here, as the spirit moves me. I’ve emailed most people with our new address, it’s no big disaster if someone learns about it a bit late. That’s sort of in the moment.

    One place I have to stay really present is visiting my mom – I never know what level of memory we’ll be at today, so I try to be ready for anything.

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply

  10. Bill hit the nail on the head for me. Most of my moments are made up of so many things that I can’t just not do. Even during my “free” moments I am liable to being called upon to help someone else or do their agenda, (not mine). This would be okay if I had chosen this, but I feel that it was thrust upon me without my whole-hearted permission – in a way I said yes to it, but only because I can’t say Yes to the alternative without feeling worse than I do now. And yet I can’t help feeling that this is so different than what I had expected, hoped for, or planned, and the opposite of what I want.

    The way for me to live in the moment in a good way (or perhaps I could call it escaping from my moments) is to go outside and take pictures. I like doing that.

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply

    1. I admit I thought also of you when I formulated my reply. I can’t imagine lives and responsibilities much less similar to the dalai lamas than ours. Acting on his wisdom is like getting marriage counseling from a priest.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  12. A quotation from an Amazon product I ordered for my son.
    Tollkien Calendar 2017 Calendar
    $12.35
    10 Used from $11.31
    23 New from $8.03

    A USED 2017 calendar? Was someone not living in the moment? Or were they? Should I buy it used? What moment would that be?
    (I did not type this.)

    Liked by 6 people

    Reply

  13. I like that wistful Charlie Brown song.

    I spend a great deal of time in a retail environment in December. When you’re in retail you often end up just wishing Christmas would be over, because everyone else’s Christmas is intruding on yours.

    I keep a Christmas CD in the car and listen to some carols on the way to and from. It helps to smooth over some of the ragged edges.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

    2. on your computer or phone go to pandora and plug in bob dylans holiday music channel. he has really nice selection of tunes

      as krista would say …. its free its free its free

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  17. What a nice post to get ‘into’ the Christmas spirit 😉

    I just finished a post about the 10 best Christmas gifts to give without murdering people in the stores. It’s really nice to read some other posts about it for inspiration.

    Keep up the good work 🙂

    Like

    Reply

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.