‘Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there…
No doubt, you are familiar with this Christmas poem by Clement Moore. I remember my mother reading it to me when I was quite small. I must admit, not every detail of the poem made sense to me. My mother did not sleep in a kerchief, my father did not sleep in a cap and I had no clue what sugarplums were. But it did paint a nice picture of Christmas morning, which for us children was all about the gifts. We would tip into the living room early on Christmas morning and find that it had been transformed into a wonderland of beautifully wrapped packages of all shapes and sizes. We could hardly wait to tear into them to find what was inside.Ah, those packages. Each one was a different size, shape or color. Some had ribbons, others had bows and each one had a name- tag that indicated who it belonged to. Some were very heavy and others were very light – it all depended on the treasure inside. In no time at all the living room would be transformed from a colorful landscape of beautifully wrapped packages into a toy land – with lots of discarded boxes, wrapping paper and bows. You see, what really mattered to us was not the packages, but what was inside.
Unfortunately, as we’ve grown into adulthood, we’ve forgotten the lesson, “It’s what’s inside that counts”. Our society focuses more on external attributes than internal values. There is an obsession with hair and makeup and beauty products. Television runs countless commercials about weight loss, hair coloring, exercise equipment and diet products. Heaven forbid, that anyone would look overweight or old. Are you kidding me? Who gets to decide what weight is “overweight” or what age is “old”? It is all relative since we are on a lifelong journey. Each of us is older than we were yesterday. I weighed 6.5 pounds when I was born. Now, a few decades later I weigh considerably more. Am I overweight? It’s all relative!
The emphasis on our “external packaging” saddens me because of the damage that it does to people’s self esteem. There have been too many instances of people ruining their health with eating disorders in an attempt to attain an ideal weight or size. I’ve heard of women who died unexpectedly during an elective plastic surgery procedure. Is a little nip/tuck really worth dying for?
Of course we all want to look our best. But too often so much emphasis is placed on external beauty that internal values are overlooked. When was that last time that you saw a commercial promoting honesty or integrity or kindness? Many of the people we consider most beautiful are sorely lacking in character. We would do well to work as hard on the internal values. We can fool each other by looking good on the outside, but that doesn’t make up for lack of character.
In the 23rd chapter of Matthew, Jesus had some strong words to say to the religious leaders of his day about this.
“What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs—beautiful on the outside but filled on the inside with dead people’s bones and all sorts of impurity. (Matthew 23:27).
Much of the cruelty and discrimination in our world is based on “external packaging”. How sad, since that packaging will not last. I’ve officiated at many funerals and no matter how good a job the mortician has done, the departed is only a shell of what he or she once was. I normally allow a section in the service for people to come up and share what the person meant to them. I have never heard anyone talk about how long & luxurious their hair was, how their biceps bulged or what a tiny waist they had. The memories tend to be about the relationship or a particular kindness or good deed. It’s what’s inside that counts.
It is doubtful that Christmas packages can communicate with each other, but if they could, I don’t think they would spend time making fun of each other. They’d realize that each one is unique and holds a very special treasure.
We would do well to remember that each one of us is also unique and holds a very special treasure. I think that the following poem by Don Rotha sums it up very well.
When you look at me, I’m not what you see,
It’s what’s inside that holds the key.
I may look old, but that’s not bad.
Inside of me, I’m just a lad.
Appearances can cause a start,
But everybody has a heart.
We live, we love, we laugh, we cry.
We store our memories and then we die.
So when you look upon this man,
Try to imagine, if you can,
The love that’s stored within my heart,
Will go with me, when I depart.
It’s what’s inside that counts!
