So this is Christmas
And what have you done
Another year over
And a new one just begun
And so this is Christmas
I hope you have fun
The near and the dear one
The old and the young
A very merry Christmas
And a happy New Year
Let's hope it's a good one
Without any fear
And so this is Christmas
For weak and for strong
For rich and the poor ones
The world is so wrong
And so happy Christmas
For black and for white
For yellow and red ones
Let's stop all the fight
A very merry Christmas
And a happy New Year
Let's hope it's a good one
Without any fear
And so this is Christmas
And what have we done
Another year over
And a new one just begun
And so this is Christmas
I hope you have fun
The near and the dear one
The old and the young
A very merry Christmas
And a happy New Year
Let's hope it's a good one
Without any fear
War is over over
If you want it
War is over
Now...
A Call to Action
This post was originally published here.
I have always loved the song "Happy Christmas" by John Lennon, Yoko Ono and the Plastic Ono Band. The combination of Lennon's melancholy voice paired with the soaring background of children from the Harlem Community Choir sets a unique tone balancing joy and sadness, maybe even frustration with an imperfect world. Just as in "Imagine", Lennon sets up a paradigm where hope is not enough, there is a challenge to see and make a better world. It's really more of a New Year's Song than Christmas.
And I admit to being a New Year junkie. I love the clean slate. I love the fresh new calendar, the first journal page unspoiled by failings and angst. I know that it is just a day and one can restart their life at any time but I just love the "feel" of the New Year. I re-set and look to make the next year productive and happy (and a little bit successful would not be bad!) I renew my dreams, goals, and set unreasonable expectations on myself. (The last part is ironic because I am absolutely aware and I still consciously choose to set those standards -- you know exercise everyday, don't yell at my kids, get up at 5 a.m., etc.)
So, as I am always a work in progress, I have to think of my place and impact on the world. And this song reminds me of that. So this is Christmas and what have you done? Another year over, a new one just begun. This year I am going to set goals (reasonable or otherwise) that are about more than me. My little world. The world is not going to be affected nearly so if I don't learn to knit or speak Mandarin as it will if I don't recycle or I curse at another driver. So here are the words that are my call to action. I won't say that my list won't include a litany of self-improvement tasks (because it will -- you know a girl's got to do what a girl's got to do) but there is room for a bigger view.
So maybe next year, I'll know how to answer "what have you done?"
