Why I hate the Little Drummer Boy but love Christmas
December 22, 2010 in: Devotionsseparator=, &Reflections on the River
The little drummer boy is not in the Bible.
Shepherds, angels, wise men, even a violence-prone king, but there is no little drummer boy who shows up at the manger. You would think it was Holy Scripture after the reaction from one woman, who told me she gets tears in her eyes every time she hears “The Little Drummer Boy.”
She also suggested I was something of a unrepentant sinner when I told her I didn’t like the song. It was okay the first 14,000 times I heard it, but now it seems to play constantly, that little brat never tiring as he bangs away on that drum. At the store, on TV commercials, Christmas concerts, the drive-through light display, there he is – bam, bam, bam.
Have you ever heard a young boy beating a drum? Musical or restful are not words that come to mind. Picture Mary, having just given birth and getting Baby Jesus to sleep, and then this kid shows up and says, “How about I pound on this drum?” I think she would have liked to throw him out on his rum-pum-pum.
Some of you are probably ready to do the same to me after I’ve trashed your favorite Christmas carol, written by a woman who was a native of St. Joseph, Mo., by the way.
The truth of the matter is that even though Christmas is a religious holiday, most of our traditions really have little to do with the Bible. If the Heavenly Father gave us directions for celebrating the birth of his son, how many of the things that we’ve done this month would be included? Reindeer? Frosty the Snowman? White elephant gift exchanges?
Sometimes I think we ought to chuck the whole thing. But wait! I’m no bah-humbug. I thoroughly enjoy Christmas. My absolute favorite thing about Christmas: Baking sugar cookies. And that’s even more worldly than the little drummer boy.
I’m coming to believe, though, that just because something isn’t religious, doesn’t mean it’s not good or righteous.
There is a magic about this time of year, this holiday – this holy day – that makes it the most wonderful time of the year. It’s not the reindeer that give us that feeling.
Sugar cookies remind me of those times when I was a kid and my mom and sisters would mix up the dough and then we’d wait for for-ev-er while it chilled in the refrigerator. Finally, they’d roll it out and let me pick the shapes to cut out, then the fun of making frosting and decorating.
Christmas is the time when our hearts turn toward home. When we realize as much as we want that fancy new gadget, the best present is being with family, sharing the warmth of a fire and maybe even homemade fudge, if you’re lucky.
There I go again, turning this sacred day into a sugar-fest! The drummer boy would beat me over the head for that. Jesus did not come to be born of a virgin and lie in a manger so we could dip pretzels in that white waxy stuff.
Even so, despite the Christmas specials you see on TV, no one is having a perfect Christmas. Every family celebration is filled with a little angst. A flurry of presents and wrapping paper is usually followed by a twinge of disappointment. Snowy nights often carry a sigh of loneliness and a longing for what used to be or what should have been.
If this is the most wonderful time of the year and this is as good as it gets, no wonder so many people tune out at Christmas. It is that quest that seems to rest deep in the human heart that makes us head for home, then makes us search the sky for a special star, to pause at the manger. And wonder if there really is something more.
The little drummer boy, as much as I hate to admit it, really was on to something.
“For God loved the world so much that He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16
