Mark Twain was a cynic but usually correct in his assessment of most things. Most of all, he hated hypocrisy. It was hard to tell if he was a Christian or not. He was certainly not a Christian in the mold of many who attend church and have a pious attitude because of their faith. His sarcastic, cynical behavior was a façade that he used to expose hypocrisy and human misbehavior. Beneath that cynical shell was a person with a great heart and deep understanding of human nature. I think he knew the true meaning of Christianity and Christmas.

This is what he had to say about Christmas. “The approach of Christmas brings harassment and dread to many excellent people. They have to buy a cart-load of presents, and they never know what to buy to hit the various tastes; they put in three weeks of hard and anxious work, and when Christmas morning comes they are so dissatisfied with the result, and so disappointed that they want to sit down and cry. Then they give thanks that Christmas comes but once a year.”

That statement is very true. On Christmas morning, many of the adults seem disappointed with the results. The children, for the most part, are always jumping with joy for anything they receive, because it comes from Santa Claus. I guess, that’s the reason Christmas is best for kids, and our best memories are those of childhood Christmases. Adults are always reflecting on the great Christmases in the past and children are looking to the future. If we could only have the attitude of the child with their childhood faith, we would never be disappointed.

Anyway, I hope that anyone who may read this blog now or in the future always has a Merry Christmas and is never disappointed. They certainly won’t be disappointed if they keep the real meaning of Christmas in mind. From the porch, Merry Christmas.