Holiday Dreams and Christmas Hope

Rushing to make my connecting flight in the Atlanta airport, I focused my energies on working my way around and between slow-moving fellow travelers. Snatches of conversation, the mayor’s recorded welcome-to-Atlanta message, and the boarding announcements from each gate I passed combined to drown out my thoughts.

No wonder it took me so long to notice the holiday music streaming over the PA system. And I do mean holiday music. We weren’t treated to hymns but to tunes from popular culture that generally have nothing to do with the birth of Jesus.

You know the sort of song I mean. “I Saw Daddy Kissing Santa Claus.” “Rockin’ around the Christmas Tree.” The oldie that finally caught my attention was “It’s Starting to Feel a Lot Like Christmas.”

Stores, television, radio, and the internet play songs and share memes and run ads designed to prepare us for Christmas. Only, they’re not…