Audio Tidbits

It seems fitting to initiate (compliments of www.QuoteGarden.com - edited for audio format) the conclusion of our Christmas wisdom with the thoughts of an anonymous philosopher who said, The message of Christmas is that the visible material world is bound to the invisible spiritual world.

Robert Lynd, who is admittedly not a philosopher said, Were I a philosopher, I should write a philosophy of toys, showing that nothing else in life need be taken seriously, and that Christmas Day in the company of children is one of the few occasions on which men become entirely alive.

Pope John 23rd added, Mankind is a great, an immense family. This is proved by what we feel in our hearts at Christmas.

Carolyn Wells is a little more down to Earth with her perspective on gifts, I love the Christmas-tide, and yet, I notice this, each year I live; I always like the gifts I get, But how I love the gifts I give!

She followed up on her wisdom with, 'Tis blessed to bestow, and yet, Could we bestow the gifts we get, And keep the ones we give away, How happy were our Christmas day!

P J O'Rourke lightens the discourse when he points out, There is a remarkable breakdown of taste and intelligence at Christmastime.  Mature, responsible grown men wear neck ties made of holly leaves and drink alcoholic beverages with raw egg yolks and cottage cheese in them.

Our 30th President, Calvin Coolidge was again a bit more philosophical, Christmas is not a time or a season but a state of mind. To cherish peace and good will, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas.

Robert Kirby is a little more practical, No matter how carefully you stored the lights last year, they will be snarled again this Christmas.

Deborah Whipp's nostalgia definitely has that ring of truth, Like snowflakes, my Christmas memories gather and dance — each beautiful, unique and too soon gone.

Ella Wheeler Wilcox knows about nostalgia as well, When Christmas bells are swinging above the fields of snow, we hear sweet voices ringing from lands of long ago, and etched on vacant places are half-forgotten faces of friends we used to cherish, and loves we used to know.

Vanessa Grimaldi said, Santa Claus is believing in something greater, believing in something magical; but Dennis the Menace pointed out that the real question is whether Santa Claus believes in you.

Charles Dickens said, I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round apart from the veneration due to its sacred name and origin, if anything belonging to it can be apart from that, as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time.

Margaret Elizabeth Sangster agrees, At Christmas-tide the open hand Scatters its bounty o'er sea and land, And none are left to grieve alone, For Love is heaven and claims its own.

Erma Bombeck gets at the heart of it, There's nothing sadder in this world than to awake Christmas morning and not be a child.

Louisa May Alcott hints at the magic, Are they Christmas fairies stealing Rows of little socks to fill? Are they angels floating hither With their message of good-will? What sweet spell are these elves weaving, As like larks they chirp and sing?

Neil deGrasse Tyson is here to make us smile, Santa knows Physics: Of all colors, Red Light penetrates fog best. That's why Benny the Blue-nosed reindeer never got the gig.

Once again, my dear people, Merry Christmas is here, With holly and mistletoe And its good will and cheer! With its joys and its heartaches, With its laughter and song, It comes as a reminder That time marches along. This reminder from Gertrude Tooley Buckingham likely gets a "Too True" from most of us.

This from Jay Leno should have perhaps been omitted but alas,

Let’s start down the Christmas trail (again compliments of www.QuoteGarden.com – formatting omitted) with a tradition from Betsy Cañas Garmon’s family. She sits with her husband in a room lit only by tree lights and wants us to remember that our blessings outnumber the lights. Happy Christmas to all.

Thomas Tusser also has advice for the season. At Christmas play and make good cheer, for Christmas comes but once a year.

Lenora Mattingly Weber is here as well to focus our perspective. Christmas is for children. But it is for grown-ups too. Even if it is a headache, a chore, and nightmare, it is a period of necessary defrosting of chill and hide-bound hearts.

Sing hey! Sing hey! For Christmas Day; Twine mistletoe and holly. For a friendship glows In winter snows, And so let’s all be jolly! No one is quite sure who first said it but there’s little doubt that we can all give it a hey! hey! of our own.

Gertrude Tooley Buckingham is joining in, Christmas is coming; it is almost here! With Santa and presents, good will and cheer! Now that may be even better than one of those Hey! heys!

In steps the realist to keep us from getting too carried away. Oh, for the good old days when people would stop Christmas shopping when they ran out of money. It’s not surprising that no one takes credit for that one.

Fortunately, May Sarton is here to keep us on the Christmas rails, I can understand people simply fleeing the mountainous effort Christmas has become but there are always a few saving graces and finally they make up for all the bother and distress.

Let's start down the Christmas trail (again compliments of www.QuoteGarden.com - formatting omitted) with a tradition from Betsy Cañas Garmon's family. She sits with her husband in a room lit only by tree lights and wants us to remember that our blessings outnumber the lights. Happy Christmas to all.

Thomas Tusser also has advice for the season. At Christmas play and make good cheer, for Christmas comes but once a year.

Lenora Mattingly Weber is here as well to focus our perspective. Christmas is for children. But it is for grown-ups too. Even if it is a headache, a chore, and nightmare, it is a period of necessary defrosting of chill and hide-bound hearts.

Sing hey! Sing hey! For Christmas Day; Twine mistletoe and holly. For a friendship glows In winter snows, And so let's all be jolly! No one is quite sure who first said it but there's little doubt that we can all give it a hey! hey! of our own.

Gertrude Tooley Buckingham is joining in, Christmas is coming; it is almost here! With Santa and presents, good will and cheer! Now that may be even better than one of those Hey! heys!

In steps the realist to keep us from getting too carried away. Oh, for the good old days when people would stop Christmas shopping when they ran out of money. It's not surprising that no one takes credit for that one.

Fortunately, May Sarton is here to keep us on the Christmas rails, I can understand people simply fleeing the mountainous effort Christmas has become but there are always a few saving graces and finally they make up for all the bother and distress.

Dinah Maria Mulock is also here for us and for are sense of good will, It is the Christmas time: And up and down 'twixt heaven and earth, In glorious grief and solemn mirth, The shining angels climb.

Fail not to call to mind, in the course of the twenty-fifth of this month, that the Divinest Heart that ever walked the earth was born on that day; and then smile and enjoy yourselves for the rest of it; for mirth is also of Heaven's making. Thank you Leigh Hunt, that certainly brings the full spirit of Christmas into focus for us.

John Kendrick Bangs sharpens our focus as well, Whose heart doth hold the Christmas glow Hath little need of Mistletoe; Who bears a smiling grace of mien Need waste no time on wreaths of green; Whose lips have words of comfort spread Needs not the holly-berries red. His very presence scatters wide The spirit of the Christmastide.

You may think it was Charlie Brown who said, The perfect Christmas tree? All Christmas trees are perfect! but it was actually Charles N Barnard. Even so, it's so true.

Let's give Edgar Guest a chance to get in his two cents worth, At Christmas a man is at his finest towards the finish of the year; He is almost what he should be when the Christmas season's here; Then he's thinking more of others than he's thought the months before, And the laughter of his children is a joy worth toiling for. He is less a selfish creature than at any other time; When the Christmas spirit rules him he comes close to the sublime.

Woops, that pesky author unknown is butting in again with another dose of reality, Christmas is the season when you buy this year's gifts with next year's money.

Eric Sevareid puts us back on track though, As long as we know in our hearts what Christmas ought to be, Christmas is.

Bob Hope expands on the point, When we recall Christmas past, we usually find that the simplest things — not the great occasions — give off the greatest glow of happiness.

D D Monroe is also on board with the sentiment, It is the one season of the year when we can lay aside all gnawing worry, indulge in sentiment without censure, assume the carefree faith of childhood, and just plain "have fun."  Whether they call it Yuletide, Noel,

Let’s get started (Compliments of www.QuoteGarden.com) with Louisa May Alcott who said, Very gay they were with snow and sleigh-bells, holly-boughs, and garlands below, and Christmas sunshine in the winter sky above. All faces shone, all

voices had a cheery ring, and everybody stepped briskly on errands of good-will.

Norman Vincent Peale joined in, Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.

Carol Nelson added, Christmas is a time when you get homesick — even when you’re home.

Roy L Smith was there too, He who has not Christmas in his heart will never find it under a tree.

Of course, Charles Dickens brought his unique perspective, I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round, as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys.

W J Cameron was also along with a thought for careful consideration, Christmas is the gentlest, loveliest festival of the revolving year — and yet, for all that, when it speaks, its voice has strong authority.

Burton Hillis makes us smile, The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree, the presence of a happy family all wrapped up in each other.

And along came Andy Rooney to remind us not to get in too much of a rush to clear the happy evidence, One of the most glorious messes in the world is the mess created in the living room on Christmas day. Don’t clean it up too quickly.

Let's get started (Compliments of www.QuoteGarden.com) with Louisa May Alcott who said, Very gay they were with snow and sleigh-bells, holly-boughs, and garlands below, and Christmas sunshine in the winter sky above. All faces shone, all

voices had a cheery ring, and everybody stepped briskly on errands of good-will.

Norman Vincent Peale joined in, Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.

Carol Nelson added, Christmas is a time when you get homesick — even when you're home.

Roy L Smith was there too, He who has not Christmas in his heart will never find it under a tree.

Of course, Charles Dickens brought his unique perspective, I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round, as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys.

W J Cameron was also along with a thought for careful consideration, Christmas is the gentlest, loveliest festival of the revolving year — and yet, for all that, when it speaks, its voice has strong authority.

Burton Hillis makes us smile, The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree, the presence of a happy family all wrapped up in each other.

And along came Andy Rooney to remind us not to get in too much of a rush to clear the happy evidence, One of the most glorious messes in the world is the mess created in the living room on Christmas day. Don't clean it up too quickly.

Naturally Charles Dickens has more than one thought for the holiday, Happy, happy Christmas, that can win us back to the delusions of our childish days; that can recall to the old man the pleasures of his youth; that can transport the sailor and the traveller, thousands of miles away, back to his own fire-side and his quiet home!

Lest we forget, W J Cameron reminds us, There has been only one Christmas, the rest are anniversaries.

Thanks go to Eric Sevareid for resetting our perspective when he pointed out that, Christmas is a necessity. There has to be at least one day of the year to remind us that we're here for something else besides ourselves.

We can all agree with Laura Ingalls Wilder when she reminds us that, Our hearts grow tender with childhood memories and love of kindred, and we are better throughout the year for having, in spirit, become a child again at Christmas time.

Never worry about the size of your Christmas tree. In the eyes of children, they are all 30 feet tall. Thank you Larry Wilde, it's too true.

Washington Irving is also here to remind us, Christmas is the season for kindling the fire of hospitality in the hall, the genial flame of charity in the heart.

Peg Bracken definitely gets it. We can only hope that we do too. She said, Gifts of time and love are surely the basic ingredients of a truly merry Christmas.

Kate L Bosher said, Isn't it funny that at Christmas something in you gets so lonely for — I don't know what exactly, but it's something that you don't mind so much not having at other times.

And Marjorie Holmes knows what we get so lonely for. She said, At Christmas, all roads lead home.

It may be sad but true that Francis C Farley is correct. He said, Instead of being a time of unusual behavior, Christmas is perhaps the only time in the year when people can obey their natural impulses and express their true sentiments without feeling self-conscious and, perhaps, foolish. Christmas, in short, is about the only chance a man has to be himself.

Sometimes it’s nice just to sit back, relax and spend a few minutes thinking of Christmas. Please press play and join me.

Sometimes it's nice just to sit back, relax and spend a few minutes thinking of Christmas. Please press play and join me.

Imagine that you are relaxing with a friend, perhaps sipping a bit of holiday cheer, and your friend says, “May you live all the days of your life. May God grant you many years to live, for sure He must be knowing the earth has angels all too few and Heaven is overflowing. May the devil chase you every day of your life and never catch you; and may you get to Heaven a half hour before the Devil knows you’re dead.”

You savor the kind words as your friend continues, “May the sun shine, all day long, everything go right, and nothing wrong. May those you love bring love back to you and may all the wishes you wish come true! May you have warm words on a cool evening, a full moon on a dark night, and a smooth road all the way to your door. May brooks and trees and singing hills join in the chorus too, and every gentle breeze that blows send happiness to you, a sunbeam to warm you, a moonbeam to charm you, a sheltering angel, so nothing can harm you.”

Imagine that you are relaxing with a friend, perhaps sipping a bit of holiday cheer, and your friend says, “May you live all the days of your life. May God grant you many years to live, for sure He must be knowing the earth has angels all too few and Heaven is overflowing. May the devil chase you every day of your life and never catch you; and may you get to Heaven a half hour before the Devil knows you're dead.”

You savor the kind words as your friend continues, “May the sun shine, all day long, everything go right, and nothing wrong. May those you love bring love back to you and may all the wishes you wish come true! May you have warm words on a cool evening, a full moon on a dark night, and a smooth road all the way to your door. May brooks and trees and singing hills join in the chorus too, and every gentle breeze that blows send happiness to you, a sunbeam to warm you, a moonbeam to charm you, a sheltering angel, so nothing can harm you.”

“May you always have walls from the storm, a roof for the rain, tea beside the fire, laughter to cheer you, those you love near you, and all your heart might desire. May you always have work for your hands to do. May your pockets hold always a coin or two. May the sun shine bright on your windowpane. May the rainbow be certain to follow each rain. May the hand of a friend always be near you. And may God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you. May flowers always line your path and sunshine light your day. May songbirds serenade you every step along the way. May a rainbow run beside you in a sky that's always blue. And may happiness fill your heart each day your whole life through.”

Tip now your cup to the spirit of the holiday and may the jolly old man himself fill our special day with joy.

Our intrepid hunters are back on the search for the Great Mouse. She was unexpectedly spotted hiding in a strange place, far away and previously unknown to our hunters. The Great Mouse was suddenly a threat to the yearly journey of the jolly old man himself. Will the intrepid hunters Chace her away in time? Will the path be cleared for the man in red and white? With our fingers crossed, press play and let’s see how the latest quest for the Great Mouse turns out.