Dear Lyla,
The holiday season is in full bloom! There are many ways to tell that we are in the midst of the hustle and bustle of this festive time of year. Animated talk of victories to be won come from our friends who are fans of the pigskin games: they are eagerly awaiting Turkey Day and the promise of gridiron action following a ritual gorging of turkey, mashed potatoes and green bean casserole. Light poles on the main street of our hometown have been festooned with garland, bows and merrily twinkling lights. Shopkeepers have frosted and bejeweled their windows to entice a look at the wares they offer to those in the throes of holiday shopping. Mommy’s and Daddy’s students start to get a bit more antsy in anticipation of the coming break and we ponder the efficacy of the lecture plans we have prepared in light of the looming hiatus from academe. Even at such a young age your schedule has become filled with pageant rehearsals and notices sent home by your teacher requesting parents to sign up to bring treats for the party you will have on the last day of class before break. While all of these things are hallmarks of the holiday season there is one tradition, for me, that signals its official beginning: the Charlie Brown specials! Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Lucy, Linus and the gang have been my holiday companions for more years than I care to memorialize in print. My old friends return at the end of October starting with Linus’ ill fated night in the pumpkin patch waiting for the appearance of The Great Pumpkin. Linus teaches a lesson in friendship, patience and faith that still resonates with me today. Peppermint Patty and Marcie are favorite sidekicks in the Thanksgiving special where we learn to be thankful for what we have and understand that despite differences we are all creatures deserving of love and dignity. It is Charlie Brown’s Christmas, however, that gives me greatest pause; I have never watched this special without crying just a little. The most bedraggled and unlikely tree becomes the most powerful of symbols in this holiday classic. In a season where sparkles and glitter reign supreme, Charlie Brown sees the potential and beauty in a tree that is overlooked and unwanted. It is because Charlie Brown can appreciate the majesty that lies within the stunted conifer that he is the hero of the Peanuts gang. Charlie Brown’s greatness lies not in his ability to kick a football, play the piano or to be the popular kid in the crowd, but in his capacity for love and caring. I like to hope that there is a little bit of Charlie Brown in all of us; we have our “good grief” days and the days where the most ordinary of folks have the capacity to care for each other in extraordinary ways. So this holiday season little one, I look forward to sharing some of my dearest childhood friends with you, in the hopes that they will become yours as well.
Letters To Lyla 