EDITORIAL: Christmas gifts for strangers — and all mankind

With most of their little advent calendar doors open, kids are nearing completion of the greatest countdown of the year. And their happiness in turn bolsters our own.

All the excitement and joy hurtling toward most of us at the speed of a nuclear-powered sleigh will zip right past others. Where most of our hearts are filled with gladness, some lie empty in loss.

Loss of health. Loss of wealth. Loss of loved ones. Loss of better days.

For each of us considering our overflowing stockings while happily humming “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” someone else might be reflecting on an old stocking gathering dust in a closet. To them, the original lyrics (1944) of “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” better reflects their state of mind:

Have yourself a merry little Christmas.

It may be your last.

Next year we may all be living in the past.

Have yourself a merry little Christmas.

Pop that champagne cork.

Next year we may all be living in New York.

No good times like the olden days,

Happy golden days of yore.

Faithful friends who were dear to us

Will be near to us no more.

But at least we all will be together

If the Lord allows.

From now on, we'll have to muddle through somehow,

So have yourself a merry little Christmas now.

Our intent today is not to unload reindeer droppings on your Christmas parade. Rather, it’s to remind you to be keenly aware that this happiest time of the year is, for some, the opposite. 

Each of us has the power to add a little light to strangers’ darkness. A warm smile, a kind word, a thoughtful gesture — these are small but potent gifts that could do far more good than you realize.

Imagine this awareness and small but genuine acts of kindness becoming a habit. That, ladies and gentlemen, would be Christmas the whole year ‘round.