Driving to Rockport this morning from Goliad where we had been caring for three grandchildren, I had a sudden revelation. I am not trying to sell you on it. You may already be past me! There are two kinds of music for the season. One is holiday music: "Jingle Bells" , "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town". etc. etc. In my way of thinking this is not Christmas music. It fits the "Happy Holidays" crowd who want to stay clear of any Nativity things. That's a large crowd of folks. I can enjoy hearing some of these holiday songs, but they are NOT Christmas songs. It's okay for little kids to hear these fantasy songs. "Rudolph" made Gene Autry a very, very, rich cowboy.
Christmas songs are almost numberless. They are in many languages around the world. "The Messiah" would be named, though it covers far more than the Nativity. "Joy To The World", "Silent Night", "What Child Is This", and on the list goes. Add to it all the Christmas cantatas that come and then disappear off the scene. John Peterson served up many of them in the sixties. These are recognized, as they are about the spiritual elements of the season.
It's okay if a greeter at Wal-Mart says to me, "Happy Holidays". I can answer with equal joy and kindness, "Merry Christmas", or whatever. They really are two separate elements of this season. Coming home we spent the entire time listening to Christmas music. Some of it was in other languages, but the tone was spiritual. It was an uplifting drive! I got this on XM radio on the classical channel. Think it is there all the time.
