Why I Love Christmas, as an Elderly Gay Man Who Lives Alone
It’s the music
I’m an elderly gay man who lives alone. Sometimes the holidays can seem lonely since I have no family left. I have a handful of friends with whom I share mutual interests. We share good times together. I’m on Zoom at least a couple of times a week. I have a web site and a weekly blog that require some inspiration and time to prepare (and edit!) I relax in my recliner and watch movies on my big screen TV most evenings. I volunteer in a few organizations and my church. In other words, I fill up my time.
Most people are in good spirits during the holidays, and that is infectious. We are reminded that Christmas is a time of peace and goodwill. Sometimes we get too sentimental about babies. But the joy, excitement, and innocence of little children is what it is about. Sharing the Good News that God came to live among us for a short time to provide an example of a perfect life. We not only have his example but also examples of how life can be filled with grace and peace rather than anger and war. We may quarrel with why God allows those things to happen, but we must remember that he gave humans the power of choice. Some people are selfish and make bad choices that impact the world in harmful ways.
What about the music?
I love Christmas because even those who are sad because of recent life experiences can find some solace. To me, music is more than just entertainment. It is an emotional experience that touches me in ways that nothing else can do.
The first two weeks of December are filled with many concerts and musical programs in Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill, NC. My preference is for choral music. HipHop and Rap just irritate me. I can tolerate country music like Willie Nelson and Anne Murray. We have a local web site Triangle Sings that keeps a calendar to remind us of all the events. We can book tickets online for the few that are not free. We have an excellent classical music station WCPE that plays a lot of Christmas music. I also dig out some of my CD’s that I only play once a year.
For a variety of reasons, I didn’t make it to any of the in-person events this year. I took advantage of YouTube, but I preferred searching the web sites of colleges with strong music programs. The St. Olaf College concert seemed too routine this year. My favorite was the Wheaton College (MA) Christmas Festival. It offered not only top-quality musicianship, but delightful programming with a wide variety of music. I’ve been disappointed in recent years by the Mormon Temple Choir Music extravaganza, but they hit a homerun this time. Perhaps it’s because I prefer traditional Christmas music. David Suchet’s dramatic reading brought me to tears. I recorded the programs so that I could watch them twice. I won’t list everyone I watched, but they more than made up for the ones I missed in person.
Christmas is over, and the winter doldrums may have set in. We still have a lot of classical music programs coming up. In fact, here in the Triangle you can find just about any kind of music you like. Raleigh hosts one of largest bluegrass festivals anywhere. Durham brings in all the touring shows, and DPAC is one the highest grossing theaters in the nation. The three amphitheaters and one large arena bring in headliners. The PNC arena amazes me that they can host a basketball game and a hockey game on the same day. I saw Josh Groban there, and he looked like some toy figure running back and forth on the stage.
Christmas music is still my favorite, and I look forward to enjoying it again next year.
