Back, way back in the day, as they say, when I was growing up in Orient, Iowa, population around 500, one of the few treats we had during the Christmas season was when Santa Claus would come to town, usually at the train depot, before the railroads abandoned train service, tore down the depot & yanked the tracks out.
Several years ago, here in Burlington, Iowa, they started to have a lighted Christmas parade on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. It's been a huge success, especially, as this year, when it was unseasonably mild and there was no sign of snow for Santa to pull his sleigh through. From the looks and sounds of people, it's obvious that Joseph Campbell was correct. In a series of interviews with Bill Moyers, available on tape through our local library, he talked about the need in America for myths and heroes. Maybe something as simple as a lighted Christmas parade can help.
1 comment:
I think that we DO need myths and heros! After all they are the archtypes of all the parts we each have inside us. Each myth, each hero,in their own way, help us to understand ourselves and our world better.
Do I dare mention that we are, this month, celebrating a HUGE Hero? One who changed the world more than any one other man ever has?.....
Do I dare mention that his entire life may very well be a myth?....But does that make us need Him any less?
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