Christmas Melancholy
Adapted by Truth Seeker (Yours Truly)

mel•an•choly adj., causing or tending to cause sadness or depression of mind or spirit.  Merriam-Webster, (Eleventh ed.)Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, Inc.

There’s a “funk” that I often find myself in during the Christmas season, and it  happened again this year. As Christmas Day gets closer, I catch myself stewing about the year, mentally cataloging my regrets of the past, my concerns about the future, and the reasons I have to be melancholy in the present. Of course, that’s when the “funk” level begins to rise. (Just to be clear, I’m not talking about a  “Soul Train”-type funk here. Although that would be weird, I might actually enjoy it.  I might embarrass some family members but my grandsons would say “Cool, Papa!”). “Melancholy” is a funny, old-fashioned word, but it does describe the feeling, this “funk.” And there’s another reason to be in a “funk;” I’ve reached the age where I’m perfectly comfortable using a word like “melancholy.” (A good friend of mine said that since I have white hair, I can say most anything I want.  Hmmm…)

So anyway the “Christmas funk” once again crept up and I started fretting over some health concerns, a strained relationship or two, a shortage of money for gifts, and the security of my retirement in this miserable economy.  Add to that the persistent crick in my back, my dear sweet wife’s unrelenting leg pain she tries to ignore, and the 747-like noise the dishwasher is now making, I figure this year’s “funk” is certainly justifiable.  (My attempt to make light of the situation by telling my wife that our entire gift budget would be “going into the cat’s litter box” didn’t go over well. I tried though.) “Merry Christmas?” Yeah, right. Whatever.  I’d just as soon curl up in a fetal position under a blanket if my stiff and sore back would let me. I’ll just sit here and stew… sort of stew in my own juices.

I discovered a long time ago that it’s impossible for me to read the Bible for any length of time without coming away in a better mood.  Really – impossible. So I opened it up and played some “Bible roulette.” It worked before.  Well, OK once – but that was (and still is) an excellent one! Thank You, Lord.

So what do I get today? “Meaningless! Meaningless! says the teacher. Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless!”

Not much Christmas spirit from Solomon with the opening verse of Ecclesiastes.  Ten verses later it’s “There is no remembrance of men of old, and even those who  are yet to come will not be remembered by those who follow.” (sigh)

The wisest man to ever live is now rubbing salt in my wound by basically telling me “Life’s a drag, then you die and no one will care.” Thanks pal. What should I have expected from a guy that had 700 wives and 300 concubines. Some “wise” man.

Bible roulette! That was a dumb idea! Whatever … I guess I’ll keep reading though.  “When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider: God has made the one as well as the other. Therefore, a man cannot discover anything about his future.”

Okay…that’s a pretty good one. I’ll give him that.  What else?  “Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for it is now that God favors what you do.”

All right! Now THAT’S the Christmas spirit! One smart man that Solomon. (And I’m going to breakout in “halleluiahs” if he tells me to have a cigar and brandy after dinner.) “Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love, all the days of this meaningless life that God has given you under the sun …”

Wow. Even twenty-eight years later, it’s impossible for me to look at my wife and not fall in love all over again. Sure, there have been some rough spots over the years, (maybe still one or two things I can’t quite get the hang of) but honestly, she still makes me crazy, in a good way.

Throughout Ecclesiastes, Solomon talks a lot about how many “under the sun” are “meaningless,” that so much of the stuff we fill our lives with just doesn’t  matter.  The tree, the gifts, the lights, the carols, the concerts, the decorations … sure, we all enjoy it, but don’t you think Solomon might say … “meaningless?”

Here is the “bottom line” for Christmas (Us engineers like bottom lines … it’s the “getting there” that drives me up the wall): A Christmas without Christ just doesn’t matter.

“Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord.“
You know, now that I think about it, my “Christmas funk” just doesn’t make sense.  Heck, I guess it’s been a pretty good year, really good in fact. And in spite of the way everything looks on the surface, things are really  looking up.

Think I’ll have eggnog now.  Maybe with a teeny bit of brandy – just for medicinal purposes, of course.

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Many thanks to freelance writer, Mike Wright, for describing (and naming) the mood I found myself in this Christmas.  And thanks to Bill Perkins (author of Six Battles Every Man Must Win) for allowing Mike to share this bit of wisdom.

Mike Wright and his wife Deborah live in West Linn, Oregon. He has five children and three grandchildren. Mike grew up in California where he had long careers as a radio DJ and in the auto body industry. With a passion for Men’s Ministry, Mike committed his life to Jesus Christ in his early 40’s.