This was a question on another forum and I must admit as much as this is my favorite time of the year, I feel no excitement or moving spirit of the season.

I count many reasons for this but do not accept them as an excuse. Regardless of how I feel I go out of my way to make it a memorable Christmas holiday for my friends and family.

Just to prove to you how I expressed my Christmas spirit and escapades, I give you this picture of myself as proof. Yes! This is really me.

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I love it! You could pass for Santa any day!

Sometimes when I'm not especially feeling "in the moment" but want to be a part of the festivities I just fake it.......and usually by the end of the particular event I'm faking it for I'm really, truly enjoying myself. I guess I can fool even myself!

I have not had the 'Christmas Spirit' in decades. I used to hate the entire Holiday Season, just don't like it much now, people are so stressed by it that they aren't very nice for the most part.

I look at it as 'the holidays are just days that nothing is open, nothing more'.

I must admit, with all the commercialization of Xmas, it isn't easy to get into the spirit of Christmas. Until the other night, when I watched the President's Washington Celebration.....Absolutely beautiful and heartwarming. That show truly did give me back the true Spirit!

BTW, Craig, most people here at NT don't know that, your handle was once SANTA and I recognize that great picture of you..

nope, not this year. I am ho hoed out.

Beautiful tree! I miss having a tree but just can't deal with tree-climbin' cats anymore!

I'm trying to have Christmas Spirit, but I keep crying...I usually get down this time of year due to missing my mom (she passed 35 years ago)...this was her favorite time of year.
But this year my weepiness is due to missing my dog, and watching my sweet MIL decline from Alzheimer's...she seems to have gone from early-stage to moderate in the last 2 months. It's like losing your mom twice

I need to suck it up because all four kids and their spouses/sig. others are going to be here this year. And they're all conscious that my MS is getting a bit worse, so I have to try to be smiley so they can all enjoy the weekend.

OK Guys!

I know this is going to sound corny and very contrary to how we all may feel, but why spend valuable limited energy on what we "once had," "who we once had and loved," "what we don't like about....," "what's wrong today vs. years passed?"

Sure, we all have our unique challenges and almost all of our friends and family have no concept of having to deal with them. So what? We are the ones who must deal with them and it's the "HOW" we deal with them everyone will notice and remember. HOLY CRAP! Even Ebeneser Scrooge only had to deal with three spirits in the same night and look how he turned out. We deal with more than that every single day.

I submit we all look at the "reason for the season," and concentrate on the positive. What we still have, can do, family and friends who still love and support us (even if they are totally ignorant of our challenges), the new friends both human and animal in our lives now.

Look Guys! Our present situation regardless of what we must deal with is sure better than the alternative. The only people who have no problems are down the street and are all together. It's called a cemetery. I'll take my challenges any day and live and experience life on my terms.

Let's agree to do what we can for others around us, be grateful and appreciative, and experience what this attitude and actions will do for them and especially us.

From "ME" to "YOU," Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, Good Morning, Good Afternoon, and Good Night. And I really mean it too!

I love the old fashioned Christmas spirit but I'm not sure it can be found in a lot of places. Since this year was the first year in our neck of the woods that the Day after Thanksgiving sales started as early as 8 PM on Thanksgiving day, I'm afraid Christmas Day will also lose its reverance.

I don't know what we would do without our crazy stockings, and all the ohter things we do to make our Christmas special. I think one thing that does help for us is to have it on New Years day. Or rather it's usually one week after Christmas on a Saturday. Everyone has had thier big holiday parties and it's time to put Christmas back into perspective.