From Naima Imani Lett (December 2007) -
I have always loved Christmas. That classic song made popular by Andy Williams (or Johnny Mathis, depending on which radio station you listen to) best describes my feelings about it:
It’s the most wonderful time of the year | There’ll be much mistltoeing
And hearts will be glowing | When love ones are near
It’s the most wonderful time of the year…
Are you swaying back and forth yet? There’s just no way to listen to that song and not sway from left to right or snap-snap, snap-snap your fingers to each little diddy. But for me, it’s not just this song. It’s all of them. I find myself dancing my way all through the holiday…in my house, in the stores, in my car.
I put in the Christmas CD Gift Rap by Cross Movement (one of my favorite hip hop groups) the other day and jammed all the way to my destination. I had flashbacks of my entire family grooving to the same CD last Christmas. I laughed as I thought of my nieces and nephews putting it down. Our family room was pure joy.
And I think that’s one of the reasons I love Christmas so much - it was such a beautiful time for my family. When I see the first lights go up, I’m transported back to my childhood and all the wonderful traditions we had: my dad putting on the music, my mom pulling out the decorations, all of my siblings and me gathered around the tree putting on ornaments, lights, garland, while dancing, singing, laughing. Good times.
And as we all grew up and moved out, it didn’t matter where we were all over the world- on Christmas, we were making our way back to that house, putting on the music and putting up the decorations while dancing, singing, laughing. Good times. And now our next generation joins us and it’s a beautiful thing…And we are so very grateful and we acknowledge that we are so very blessed…
So we celebrate! We celebrate our immediate family as well as our extended family and our global spiritual family. As good as it all is on this side of heaven, we also recognize that this hardly compares to the awesome celebration that is taking place simultaneously in the heavenly realm as all of heaven and earth rejoices over the reason that we have Christmas in the first place:
“…Christ Jesus, who being in very nature God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking on the form of a servant, and being made in the likeness of men…(Philippians 2:5-11)
We celebrate the advent (or coming) of our Lord and that He loved us enough to come as the God-Man and give up his life that if we believed in Him, we could be a part of His family forever.
Can you imagine what it’ll be like when one day we are joined with our heavenly family and our God, our heavenly Father pumps up the music, we pull out our best decorations, and we all gather around dancing, singing, laughing. Good times.
I’m convinced that’s what my mother is doing there right now… along with our many loved ones who have gone on home. So, what are we waiting on? Let’s hold it down on this end while they celebrate on that end. Let’s join the party! It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!
Go forth,
Naima
Busy! Busy! There has been a lot going on over here recently, but I’m not complaining. It’s good to be in the mix… especially since we’re on the cusp of the inevitable slow down with the industry preparing for the possible SAG strike. 
