A Child’s Christmas
Column by David Reynolds
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You remember the way it was on Christmas. You thought the day would never come. December was a year, not a month.
While waiting for Christmas you were not quite sure what was happening. Yet, your imagination was able to put all the pieces together. You discovered that life is a miracle. And then correctly assumed that every piece in it was also a miracle. Read more
The camera
Column by Nan Russell
www.nanrussell.com
It wasn’t any camera. It was the revolutionary Kodak Instamatic, housed in a shiny black case, with a built in flashcube, using a 126 cartridge. All my high school friends had one, or so it seemed to me. I told my parents it was the only gift I wanted that Christmas.
I made certain they knew which one it was. On separate trips, I took my mother and father to the camera store to show them this new technology that excited me. I even tore an ad from a magazine and taped it to my wish-list so they wouldn’t make a mistake. Read more
‘The Christmas Wars’
Column by Krysti Mayers
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It has been dubbed “The Christmas Wars.” In our politically correct world, the words “Merry Christmas” have turned into “Happy Holidays.” Because of this, there also seems to be a movement for many Christians to begin protesting over the term “Happy Holidays.” “Let’s put Christ back in Christmas,” or “Jesus is the reason for the season,” as the blowback goes. They join groups on Facebook specifically called: “It’s Merry Christmas NOT Happy Holidays.”
As I sit in my decorated living room during the week of Hannukah, I look at the Nativity scene on my mantel that sits across from my pagan Christmas tree and hold a picture of my sons sitting on the lap of a mythical gift giver. I can’t help but reflect on the many traditions we keep this season that result from periods of history that are sometimes forgotten. Is Jesus really the reason for the season? Everyone knows that the shepherds were in their fields, during a lambing season that most likely was in the spring, not on Dec. 25th. So is there really a reason to be so offended at how others decide to celebrate this winter solstice? Read more
Focus | Consumers in the Christmas spirit
Story by Chris Graham
freepress2@ntelos.net
That 95 percent of Americans agree on anything is worthy of a news story.
“The number that really stuck out to me from the survey is that 95 percent of Americans think it is important to help kids during the holiday season. That number, we expect it to be high, but that number is very, very high. It would be hard to find something else that 95 percent of Americans would agree on,” said Justin Greeves, a senior vice president at Harris Interactive, which conducted a survey of attitudes toward gift-giving this holiday season, and found that despite the continuing economic slowdown most Americans still have something of a Christmas spirit left in them. Read more
The parade is, sorta, kinda, back on
Story by Chris Graham
freepress2@ntelos.net
At least the floats will be on display, thanks to Waynesboro Downtown Development Inc., which is organizing an exhibit of floats that were to have been in the canceled Dec. 5 Waynesboro Christmas Parade.
The exhibit will be part of the two-day Christmas in the River City event scheduled for Friday, Dec. 18, and Saturday, Dec. 19. The display will be set up in the parking lot at Constitution Park the night of Friday, Dec. 18, WDDI events coordinator Rick Moyer said. Read more
The Rant | It’s Christmastime in the city
Video Essay by Chris Graham
freepress2@ntelos.net
Not that you’d be able to tell by watching the Grinches in City Hall. That’s maybe a bit harsh, but so is the policy that is being cited as the excuse for not rescheduling the Waynesboro Christmas Parade that got snowed out last weekend.
AFP editor Chris Graham delves into the topic and suggests adding some flexibility to the policy in today’s installment of The Rant. Read more
Christmas Trees, Menorahs, and being apart (on Christmas)
Posted by afp on December 23, 2009 · 2 Comments
Column by Bruce Sallan
www.brucesallan.com
I don’t care if you call it a Hannukah bush or an ordinary tree; it is a Christmas tree, pure and simple. It represents the birth of Christ and it’s not just a secular symbol. But, it matters to my wife, so we resolved the issue by agreeing, like so many mixed religious couples, to celebrate both Christmas and Hannukah. Since my boys were raised Jewish, and my younger son just became a Bar Mitzvah, it really isn’t an issue for me anymore. Read more
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