The following is the opinion and analysis of the writer:
This really is the most wonderful time of the year.
I’m not just saying that because of the Christmas song I’ve listened to a million times over the past month. I truly believe it. We get to see relatives who live far away, we spend time thinking about gifts for the people we love, and we embrace a feeling of charity toward all. It’s the best.
But it ends too soon. By the time we take down the Christmas tree or pack up the menorah, we’re already thinking about our jobs, getting stuff done around the house, trying to get in shape for next year, and all the mundane things that make up our daily lives. Soon enough, we’ll also go back to looking at each other with suspicion, especially when it comes to politics.
As much as I wish this season of giving would last all year, I doubt that idea would get much traction. It’s a lot of work and we can’t pay the bills with Christmas spirit. But we can keep a little bit of that spirit alive in small ways every day.
Give a smile and a nod to somebody you pass on the street. It might make their day. Scrounge up a buck or two for someone who needs it more than you do. Maybe buy a gift for a loved one for no particular reason. Take a break from work and chat with a lonely neighbor.
Why not keep the spirit alive in big ways, too? For me, that is all about compassion and charity. It is an antidote to cynicism. As a community and a country, we need that antidote. Buckets and buckets of it.
We all just went through an extraordinarily cynical election season. We had a slate of candidates who didn’t care in the least whether they were lying to the public. On and on it went for more than a year. And it will start back up before you know it.
We also are living through a time when a disease came out of nowhere and killed more than 1 million people. We didn’t know how to handle it. We lost faith in each other and started making wild accusations.
As we look ahead at the challenges of the coming year, we should keep the spirit front and center. It’s cheesy, I know. But it’s important.
A lot of people in Tucson don’t have a place to sleep at night. As a city, we should make sure compassion and charity guide our policies as we help the homeless.
Thousands of people are arriving at Arizona’s border with Mexico, hoping for a better life. As the Tucson community has done so many times in the past and continues to do, we should make sure they are safe and warm while they’re here.
At some point, we will have to make big decisions about our dwindling water supply. Some people will come out as winners, while others could see their livelihoods destroyed. Again, we should keep compassion and charity front and center.
We have plenty of cynicism in our politics and daily lives. Sooner or later, we will have to make a concerted effort to rid ourselves of that cynicism.
The holiday season is a good place to start.
