The Spirit of Christmas part 11

"A Christmas Carol" (continued)

The very next moment, Scrooge woke in his bed. He raced to the window, then jofully said, "I haven't missed Christmas---what wonderful fun. Merry Christmas," he called out, "to everyone!" Then he stopped a small boy and asked humbly, "Please take this turkey to the Cratchit family." Then, handing out gifts, he trampled through the chill, to call on his nephew and wish him goodwill. And so began a most wonderful day, full of laughter and joy, feasting and play. Scrooge had been taught, as we hoped he would, not to be stingy, but giving and good! (The End)

"The Night Before Christmas" (continued)

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work and filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk, And laying his finger aside of his nose And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose. He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle, And away they all flew like the down of a thisthle. But I heard him exclaim ere he drove out of sight, "Merry Christmas to all, and to all a goodnight!" (The End)

Love,

Sara McMurdie

P.S. I hope everyone is enjoying the stories. Tomorrow night will be the start of Hanukkah and Hanukkah Stories.

The Spirit of Christmas part 10

"A Christmas Carol" (continued)
In the blink of an eye, Scrooge returned to this bed, and was met by a jolly spirit who said, "I am the good Ghost of Christmas Present. Follow me now to see something pelasant." In a flash, they were in Bob Cratchit's place, which looked very festive, depsite the cramped space. Scrooge watched the Cratchits sit down to eat their small Christmas dinner as if a great treat. "God Bless us, every one," Tiny Tim cried, as his family blessed him, smiling with pride. "Tiny Tim," said the Spirit, "will always be lame. But he is still cheerful, despite his great pain." As the Spirit departed, another took shape---a horrible creature in a hood and a cape. It spoke not a word and seemed to be dumb. It was the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. At the graveyard it showed Scrooge what lay ahead: misery and sorrow for Tiny Tim was dead. Then Scrooge saw his own grave, unloved and unkept, alone in a cemetery where noboby wept. As they wandered the streets, he heard people say, "The old miser's gone, but who cares anyway?" As the ghost disappeared Scrooge did something strange: he fell down and wept, "Now I know I must change!" (to be continued tomorrow).
"The Night before Christmas" (continued)
As I drew in my head, and was turning around, Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound. He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot, And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot. A bundle of toys he had flung on his back, And he looked like a pedlar just opening his pack. His eyes----how they twinkled! His dimples----how merry! His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry! His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow, And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow. The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth, And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath. He had a broad face and a little round belly, That shook when he laughed, like a bowlful of jelly. He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf, And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself. A wink of his eye and a twist of his head, Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread. (to be continued tomorrow).

Love,
Sara McMurdie

The Spirit of Christmas part 9

"A Christmas Carol" (continued)
Later that evening, when Scrooge was alone, he heard rattling chains and a ghostly moan. Then Scrooge saw poor Marley, who in happier days was Scrooge's partner with the same selfish ways. "Scrooge," wailed the ghost, "I've come to warn thee, mend your greedy ways, or you'll end up like me. "Deep in the night, before Christmas Day, three Spirits will come to show you the way." With that, Marley's ghost then started to fade, leaving Ebenezer Scrooge alone and afraid. Scrooge was dismayed as he crept into bed. But he drifted to sleep, despite his great dread. As the clock struck one on that freezing night, Ebenezer Scrooge awoke with a fright. And as he blinked his eyes in the gloom, an unearthly Spirit appeared in the room. "Follow me," it said, as Scrooge looked aghast. "I am the Ghost of Christmas Past!" The ghost took Scrooge back to Christmases of old, when Scrooge was warm-hearted, not sad and cold. They saw Fan, his sister, and Fezziwig his boss. "I was happy," gasped Scrooge, "not lonely and cross." And as Scrooge was shown each old Christmas day, he cried, "I can't bear it! Take me away!" (to be continued tomorrow).
"The Night Before Christmas" (continued)
With a little old driver so lively and quick, I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick. More rapid than eagles hsi coursers they came, And he whistled and shouted and called them by name; "Now Dasher! Now Dancer! Now Prancer and Vixen! On Comet! On Cupid! On Donner and Blitzen! To the top of the porch! To the top of the wall! Now dash away! Dash away! Dash away all!" As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly, When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky, So up to the housetop the coursers they flew, With a sleigh full of toys and St. Nicholas too. And then in a twinkling, I heard on the roof The prancing and pawing of each little hoof. (to be continued tomorrow).

Love,

Sara McMurdie

The Spirit of Christmas part 8

I do have more Christmas memories, but I am going to wait and skip them for tonight and the next couple of days. Right now I am going to jump right into my Christmas stories. The first one will be "A Christmas Carol, Retold from the story by Charles Dickens." The second story will be "The Night Before Christmas, Written by Clement C. Moore." If these two stories don't bring the spirit of Christmas back into your heart, then I don't know what else will. But, here it goes.

"A Christmas Carol" Retold from the story by Charles Dickens. One Christmas Eve, in old London town, Ebenezer Scrooge looked out with a frown. "Merry Christmas, Uncle!" called his cheery nephew. "Come join in our festive dinner, won't you?" "Bah, humbug," growled Scrooge, "to Christmas Day! What's merry about it? Now just go away!" Poor Cratchit, his clerk, who worked hard each day, asked Scrooge, "Is tomorrow a holiday?" "I suppose you will want me to pay you as well!" grumbled Scrooge, who was stingy as you can tell. Scrooge hate Christmas because he was greedy. He felt no pity for the poor and the needy. (to be continued tomorrow).

"A Night Before Christmas." Written by Clement C. Moore. 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 hope that St. Nicholas soon would be there. The children were nestled all snug in their bed, While visions of sugarplums danced in their heads; And Mama in her kerchief and I in my cap, Had just settled down for a long winter's nap. When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter, I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter. Away to the window I flew like a flash, Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash. The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow Gave luster of midday to objects below, When, what to my wondering eyes should appear, But a miniature sleigh and eight tiny reindeer. (to be continued tomorrow).

Love,

Sara McMurdie

The Spirit of Christmas part 7

For tonight, instead of a Christmas memory, I will finish up with the Christmas Stories, so that way I can start a new Christmas story on Monday night.

"True Meaning of Christmas" (continued)

Santa then reached in his bag and pulled out a CANDY CANE and hunt it on the tree. "Teach the children that the candy can represents the sheperds' crook. The crook on the staff helps to bring back strayed sheep to the flock. The candy cane is the symbol that we are our brother's keeper." He reached in again and pulled out an ANGEL. "Teach the children that it was the angels that heralded in the glorious nes of the Savior's birth. The angels sang Glory to God in the highest, on earth peace and good will toward men." Suddenly I heard a soft twinkling sound, and from his bag he pulled out a BELL.. "Teach the children that as the lost sheep are found by the sound of the bell, it should ring mankind to the fold. The bell symbolizes guidance and return. Santa looked back and was pleased. He looked at me and I saw theat the twinkle was back in his eyes. He said, "Remember, teach the children the true meaning of Christmas and do not put me in the center, for I am but a humble servant of the One that is, and I bow down to worship him, our LORD, our GOD." MERRY CHRISTMAS

"The First Christmas" (continued)

But that silent night, as the wise men dreamed, God told them that Herod was not what he seemed. "King Herod is filled with jealousy, and he means to have Jesus killed heartlessly. So listen well to this warning I say, and journey home by another way." Then an angel appeared to Joseph one night, to tell him his family should also take flight. "Hark," sang the angel, "pack up and flee to the land of Egypt till God calls unto thee." So Jesus was saved to teach of God's glory, and that is the end of the first Christmas story.

Starting tomorrow will be the story of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens and The Night Before Christmas. I hope you are starting to feel the spirit of Christmas. I know I am.

Love,

Sara McMurdie

The Spirit of Christmas part 6

I remember another Christmas memory that I did as a child. When Grandma and Grandpa Calkins was alive and when we would go and visit them in High Rolls, New Mexico around Christmas time, (which by the way High Rolls is between Cloudcroft and Alamogordo, New Mexico) my sisters, cousins, and I would look forward to the idea that it would snow in the High Rolls mountains. When it did snow, we would get the sleds out, and I am talking the old fashion sleds with the blades and wood boards, there was this little hill on my grandparents property, and we would use the sleds and slide down the hill. We would sometimes run into a fence because we could quite guide the sled very well, but we had fun going down the little hill.

Now onto my stories.

"True Meaning of Christmas" (continued)
He then brought out a HOLY LEAF. "Teach the children that the holly plant represents immortality. It represents the crown of thorns worn by our Savior. The red holly berries represent the blood shed by Him. Next he pulled from his bad a GIFT and said, "Teach the children that God so loved the world that he gave his begotten son." Thanks be to God for his unspeakable gift. (to be continued tomorrow).

"The First Christmas (continued)

In a land to the east, over hills afar, three wise men saw a bright new star. The wise men knew that the star foretold the birth of a King, for it was written of old. And so they journeyed night after night, following the star that shone so bright. At last they arrived in Jerusalem town, where King Herod sat on the throne in his crown. They asked him, "Have you seen the new Jewish King? We've followed the star in search of him." Herod was angry, for he was no fool; he knew that a new king would threaten his rule. He said, "When you find the King of the Jews, return by my palace to pass on the news." So, bearing rich gifts they went on to find the little Lord Jesus, so gentle and kind. Kneeling before him, they started to sing, "With these precious gifts, we praise the new King." (to be continued tomorrow).

Well, I do hope everyone is enjoying the stories and enjoying my Christmas memories.

Love,

Sara McMurdie

The Spirit of Christmas part 5

Before I begin with another memory from the past for Christmas. Someone made a comment that they liked the Thomas Kinkade pictures. I will do my best to put more Thomas Kinkade pictures on my blogs, but don't be surprise of other pictures come up too. Now to continue with another story from the past that deals with Christmas. I remember on a few Christmases that we spent sometimes in Las Cruces, New Mexico; there were times that we could not always make it over to Grandma and Grandpa Calkins place, mainly sometimes they would go to California to spend Christmas with Uncle Ken and his family. But, when we did spend Christmas in Las Cruces, New Mexico, I always remember my sisters and I would help decorate the tree. When it came to putting the tinsel on the tree, that was always our favorite part, especially when my sister Leona and I put the tinsel on the tree, we always felt that one side of the tree needed more tinsel then the other side of the tree, and my mother would tell us that we neeeded to even out the tree, we were using too much of the tinsel on one side of the tree. Well, mom had to fix it for us, but we still had fun decorating the tree.

Now to continue on with the stories.

"True meaning of Christmas" (continued)
Once again he reached into hsi bag and removed a WREATH and placed it on the tree. "Teach the children that the wreath symbolizes the real nature of love. Real love never ceases. Love is one continuous round of affection." He then pulled from his bag in ORNAMENT of himself. "Teach the children that I, Santa Claus, symbolize the generosity and good will we feel during the month of December." (to be continued tomorrow).

"The First Christmas" (continued)
High over the hills, on that joyous night, some shepherds were roused by a dazzling light. "Do not be afraid," an angel said, "I've come with good tidings God wants you to spread, Born on this night is a baby boy who'll bring peac on Earth, goodwill, and joy." When darkness returned and the shepherds were able, they left their sheep flocks and went to the stable. They knelt before Jesus and began to sing, "Praise be to God for our Savior, the King." Then they told Mary all they had heard, before they departed to spread the good word. (to be continued tomorrow).

Just a reminder, the stories that I am telling are not coming from me, they are coming from a book and what I found online. Again, I hope everyone is enjoying what I a putting on my blog.

Love,

Sara McMurdie

The Spirit of Christmas part 4

There is another memory, that I remember around Christmas time. This may sound weird during the winter, but my mother would make snow ice cream for us to eat. We lived in Las Cruces, New Mexico and when it would snow during the winter, my sisters and I would gather the cleanest snow, as much as we could pack in a bowl. My mother would use or put vanilla, sugar, evaporated milk, and maybe some whipping cream and mixed in with the snow, and then we put in the freezer to let it set, and this would take a few hours for the ice cream to set, but when it was done, we got to eat snow ice cream and it was good. That was always the best
Christmas treat we ever had.

I am skipping the stories tonight, but will pick them back up tomorrow.

Love,

Sara McMurdie

The Spirit of Christmas part 3

The second memory of Christmas that I remember as a child. I always remember around Christmas and Hanukkah time that my sisters and I loved to help my mother and when we visit grandma & gandpa Calkins (Dad's side), we loved helping out with baking. It was fun making bread, pies, chocolate chip cookies, sugar cookies, and making ginger bread men. The fun part about making ginger bread men, is that we turned some the men into ginger bread women. We also enjoyed making cinnamon rolls and saving them to rewarm them up in the oven for the next morning and eating them for breakfast with a cup of hot cocoa. We even had homemade pumpkin bread and regular white bread, especially if the bread was toasted in an iron skillet.

Now to continue my stories that I started yesterday.

"True Meaning of Christmas" continued

He again reached into his bag and pulled out a brilliant STAR "Teach the children that the star was the heavenly sign of promises long ago. God promised a Savior for the world, and the star was the sign of fulfillment of His promise."

He then reached into his bag and pulled out a CANDLE. "Teach the children that the candle symbolizes that Christ is the light of the world, and when we see this great light we are reminded of He who displaces the darkness." (to be continued).

The First Christmas-continued

Then one day a messenger came to declare they should go to their birthplace to pay taxes there. Mary rode her donkey while Joseph led them on the long winding road toward Bethelhem. They journeyed on, all day until night, when, finally, Bethelem came into sight.

As they entered the town, it soon became clear that they needed to rest, for the baby was near. But wherever they went, they were told the same thing: "Sorry, we're full. There's no room at the inn." "I have a small stable," one innkeeper said. "It's warm and it's dry, with clean straw for a bed."

So that very night, before break of dawn, the animals watched as Jesus was born. They all rejoiced as they saw, where he lay, God's only son, in a manger of hay. They did not know that the baby so small would one day grow up to save us all. (To be continued).

I hope everyone is enjoying the stories and enjoying the christmas memories that I have been posting. Try to respond back when everyone has the time.

Love,

Sara McMurdie

The Spirit of Christmas part 2

When I was growing up I am always reminded of the many christmases I have had with my grandparents, parents, my two sisters, aunts & uncles, and all my cousins. Even though I grew up in the Jewish religion, there were some of my family on both sides that celebrated christmas. From the very first christmas that I remember celebrating I was about six or seven years old, and my sister Leona was about five or six years old. One of the gifts that my sister and I had received a doll-house that was made of tin or metal, with plastic furniture for the doll-house. Well, my sister Leona and I felt like that the doll-house needed more decorations for the doll-house, so, we toll some silver tinsel of the christmas tree and decorated the doll-house with tinsel. Our mother was a little frustrated, because we were making a mess all over the living room floor, but we had fun decorating the doll-house with tinsel. Mom wasn't too mad at us, because it was a wood floor. This remberance took place in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

As I was going through some books I found a few christmas stories that will help with finding the true meaning and the spirit of Christmas. The stories will come in parts each day. But, first, a little something from the bible and a question.

Isaiah 7:14-Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

Who told Mary that she would have a baby? Answer read Luke 1:26-33 in the New Testament of the bible.

Now on with the stories. The First story that I found online last year, will begin with: "True Meaning of Christmas"

Just a week before Christmas I had a vistor. This is how it happened. I just finished the household chores for the night and was preparing to go to bed, when I heard a noise in the front of the house. I opened the door to the front room and to my surprise, Santa himself stepped out next to the fireplace. "What are you doing?" I started to ask. The words choked up in my throat and I saw he had tears in his eyes. His usual jolly manner was gone. Gone was the eager, boisterous soul we all know. He then answered me with a simple statement....
"TEACH THE CHILDREN!" I was puzzled. What did he mean? He anticipated my question and with one quick movement brought forth a miniature toy bag from behind the tree. As I stood bewildered, Santa said, "Teach the children! Teach them the old meaning of Christmas. The meaning that now-a-days Christmas has forgotten. "Santa then reached in his bag and pulled out a FIR TREE and placed it before the mantle. "Teach the children that pure green color of the stately fir tree remains green all year round, depicting the everlasting hope of mankind, all the needles point heavenward, making it a symbol of man's thoughts turning toward heaven. (To be continued tomorrow).

The second story is coming from a book called "My Treasury of Christmas Stories," and the First out of the book will be "The First Christmas." "Retold from Luke 2:1-20; Matthew 2:9-12."

Our story begins in old Nazareth, where a young maiden, Mary, was to marry Joseph. But one day the angel Gabriel appeared saying to Mary, "There is nothing to be feared. You have been chosen to bear God's son. His name will be Jesus. He will save everyone." Mary was worried. What would Joseph say if she was with child on their wedding day? But Gabriel gave Joseph the wondrous news that she bore God's son, the King of the Jews. So Mary and Joseph were happily married, and awaited the child that sweet Mary carried. (To be continued tomorrow).

Now it is your turn, do any of you a have a childhood rememberance of a christmas past, or have a story about the true meaning of christmas or the spirit of christmas. If so do share it.

Love,

Sara McMurdie

The Spirit of Christmas

It has come to my attention that many people have lost what the true meaning of christmas is all about. Some people believe that christmas is now comercialized and it is all about the presents and such. Some believe that it is about making a profit before christmas, or on christmas day. I am hoping that I can help everyone get back the true meaning and the spirit of christmas. It is not about presents and the stores making a profit before christmas. It should be about spending christmas with family and friends. Starting today and up until christmas day I will be posting my thoughts on what christmas really is all about. Also, a book that was given to me has the gifts of christmas and those will be added just as well.

For those who would like to make a comment back from my postings underneath my blogs feel free to do so, I would love your input on what you think about what the true meaning of christmas is, and maybe we all will feel the spirit of christmas. Also, Hanukah will be coming up on December 11th and I will be making postings about Hanukah and it's traditions on how it is celebrated.

Love,

Sara McMurdie