Merry Christmas!

The idea
Last night, Mr. Romantic and I had a lovely Christmas Eve date night. We both like to read, and we both like intellectual discussion. So I suggested that we start our own private little book club.

Although we prefer reading non-fiction over fiction, I thought that starting with A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens would be fun considering the timing of our book club debut. I’ve seen different movie versions of the story, but I’d never read it, and neither had Mr. Romantic. So my plan was for us to read the book, discuss it, and then watch one of the movie versions. December 24th seemed like the perfect time for this kind of evening. And so the “Awesome Cheesy Romantic A Christmas Carol Evening” was planned.

The book
At the beginning of the book, there’s this passage where Scrooge’s nephew invites him over for Christmas, and, of course, Scrooge declines and asks his nephew what good has Christmas ever done to him. His nephew replies:
"There are many things from which I might have derived good, by which I have not profited, I dare say. Christmas among the rest. But I am sure I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round – apart from the veneration due to its sacred name and origin, if anything belonging to it can be apart from that – as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow-passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys, and therefore, uncle, though it has never put a scrap of gold or silver in my pocket, I believe that it has done me good, and will do me good; and I say, God bless it!"
This is what I'm talking about – it really is so very valuable to accumulate experiences, often even more valuable than accumulating things. Experiences are what shape our humanity.

At the beginning of the story, Scrooge, a very wealthy man in money, is very poor in heart. However, the four spirits that visit him show him the error of his ways of course.

Another passage that stood out for me was when in response to Scrooge's statement that Marley was always a good man of business, Marley's spirit replies:
"Business!" cried the Ghost, wringing its hands again. "Mankind was my business. The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence, were, all, my business. The dealings of my trade were but a drop of water in the comprehensive ocean of my business!"
There are other passages in the book I could have quoted and related to the kind of life I've been striving for. I think this year has been a good little first step towards that.

The date
So last night, Mr. Romantic and I discussed the book, snuggled up on the couch and watched A Christmas Carol (the version with Alistair Sim in the role of Scrooge). What a perfect date!

The wish
I would like to wish you a very merry Christmas, my friend. And may you accumulate, in the years to come, experiences that do you good!


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