Dec 07, 2007 - 04:04:39 CST
I came home the other day to find a Christmas gift in my mailbox, sent to me by my Realtor. Ihope Idon't ruin the surprise among all of his other clients, but it was a CD of Christmas music. This Ifound to be an appropriate gift for me, as Ireally like CDs, and Ican no longer afford to buy them for myself, after having bought a house.As I listen to the London Symphony Orchestra charging through the disc's opener, "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing,"I'm filled with all types of magical memories and wonderment. For instance, I now wonder why I don't use the word "hark"more often in my everyday vernacular. "Hark! My fingers are freezing,"Iwould say.
Christmas season can have a calming effect on the soul. Even when confronted with a cavalcade of red lights on Ninth Street, at least the light looks a little festive, so Iwon't smash my head into the steering wheel quite as hard. It's like Santa Claus is making me late to work.
Christmas songs play a huge part in the calming influence of the holiday seasons. The carols of Christmas are mostly beautiful compositions, easily recognizable and impossible to get out of one's head. Even in the midst of July, you may mysteriously find yourself whistling "Angels We Have Heard on High" while you're tending to your garden,and I'll bet you find yourself smiling, at least as much as someone who's whistling can.
Ilove Christmas songs, and Ilook forward to their arrival each year. When I was younger and had considerably more free time, Imade a ritual out of starting my Christmas season each year by pulling the cassette tapes of Christmas music out of storage. They were put into storage because Christmas music is great and all, but society dictates that we can only listen to these songs in November or December, and if anyone hears "O Tannenbaum" wafting out of your open car window at any other time of the year, you are liable to be hit by a can of Flavorite cranberry sauce.
My favorite holiday CDs were the first two volumes of "A Very Special Christmas."If you don't have these, Isuggest you go find them. Frank Sinatra and Cyndi Lauper singing "Santa Claus is Coming to Town."Bon Jovi performing "Back Door Santa."Extreme doing "Christmas Time Again." Run-DMC's Christmas classic, "Christmas in Hollis."It's all here.
To this day, Ihave these songs singed deeply in whatever lobe of my brain that is supposed to be remembering how many milliliters are in a tablespoon or how to tie a bowtie. I barely function as a human being because valuable space in my brain is dedicated to all the lyrics of Boyz IIMen singing "The Birth of Christ."
Ican't even listen to any version of "The Little Drummer Boy" not sung by Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band, any more. "Where is the saxophone?" Iwill ask out loud each time I hear the Muzak version playing in the mall. And no one answers me, because these are not the questions you ask strangers outside of the Hot Topic.
So, if you see me driving this holiday season, and it looks like I'm screaming in road rage, most likely I am just singing my heart out to Bryan Adams' "Run Rudolph Run."Resist the urge to throw canned cranberry gunk at me.
(Reach columnist Kelly Hagen at 250-8259 or kelly.hagen@bismarcktribune.com.)
Bob wrote on Dec 10, 2007 8:31 AM:
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