Making Magic

     Harry Potter is magical; but nothing beats the magic of Christmas with children.  Twelve people, one house, two weeks off of school, cookies, lights, trees, music, and snow falling softly outside the window.  It’s the perfect concoction for warm memories.

When I was in 5^th grade, I questioned Christmas magic.  Most of my friends told me that Santa wasn’t real.  I finally approached my Dad about the subject.  After a few silent moments, he read, “Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus,” to me.  Then he taught me a wonderful lesson about the magic of Christmas. 

Magic doesn’t just happen.  Magic is made.  Just as Harry Potter had to learn he had magical powers, parents and families can create warmth and magic in their homes.  At our house, we make magic as early as possible.  Christmas caroling, twelve red stockings hanging by the fireplace, homemade gingerbread houses, and a secret Twelve Days of Christmas.  Too much celebrating?  I don’t think so.

One element in the magical Christmas potion is music.  We start playing it in early November, and are glad that it’s online and on the air.  Another magical element is “Cookie Day,” when we all put on aprons and roll out the dough to make as many Christmas treats as possible.  We don’t stop with the sugar cookies.  Gingerbread cookies, magic window cookies, red and green lollipops, and cream cheese mints are also in the mix.  Yes, it’s easier to buy them, but cookies from the store don’t make as much magic.

Then there’s St. Nicholas Tag.  Since we have German ancestry, we put our shoes out on December 5^th.  Twelve pairs of shoes, lined up from biggest to smallest, all along the front porch are a sight to behold.  In the morning the shoes are cold and frosty and filled with Christmas candy...and a bit of snow.  Pure magic.

Cocoa is an absolute necessity.  We drink it by the gallon.  Our large container from Sam’s Club reads, “Great for daycares, businesses, restaurants and schools.”  “Which category are we?” piped my daughter one day as we were filling our mugs.  “All four,” my son quickly answered.  Have you tried vanilla ice cream and candy canes in hot cocoa?  Absolutely magical.

Nothing creates magic like giving.  Drawing names in a large family is just too much fun.  In early November we each choose a family member to give a gift to.  Can a six-year-old keep a secret?  Not mine.  Everyone immediately hears whose name she drew, but the rest are confidential.  Our only guideline is that the gift must be homemade.  Even the smallest children can paint, sew or build something.  Soon, secrets and surprises invade every corner of our warm house.  The concoction of interestingly-wrapped gifts under our tree is a sight to behold.  Nothing makes magic like giving.

            I spent two Christmases of my college years living in Japan.  Since it’s not a Christian nation, Japanese schools and businesses are open on December 25^th, and life goes on as usual.  However, in an effort to capitalize on a Western holiday, major stores still put up Christmas trees and a few Santa and reindeer decorations.  My Japanese winters were lonely, and every time I saw something even remotely Christmas-related, I would feel a bit of warmth in my homesick heart.  Since that experience I have been especially grateful for every business that puts up Christmas decorations.  Commercialism?  Not in my book.  Each wreath and bell is a celebration of Christmas. 

When we lived in Las Vegas, we generally did our shopping at the Toys R Us store, just two blocks from our home.  My husband and I would normally arrive at the store around 10pm.  Going up and down the aisles stacked with late-night inventory, we passed other bleary-eyed parents trying to make last-minute decisions.  Now we do most shopping online, but we still make sure we have a few late-night shopping sprees, late-night wrapping sessions, and late-night cocoa tasting parties. Parents have the most fun at Christmastime! We are the makers of magic. 

Why is magic so important?  Well, why did Harry Potter need a magic wand?  To fight evil.  Christmas magic is a surefire way to transform hearts without hope – in our homes, our communities and our nation.

In addition, family specialists cite the need for traditions in raising children.  Customs provide consistency and give children something to anticipate – a vital key in a healthy childhood.  Warm traditions build warm memories which will warm grown children on future winter nights when they are far away from home.  

This year one of our sons is in northern Sweden, where the December sun comes up at 10am and goes down at 1pm. The temperature wavers between 0 and -25 degrees. It's a frozen winter wonderland! Despite the dark and cold, his letters home are cheery and full of light. Thanksfully he carries the spirit of Christmas -- born from years of gift-giving, cocoa, nativities, and caroling -- in his heart.

In the words of Charles Dickens, “It is good to be children sometimes, and never better than at Christmas, when its mighty founder was a child himself.”

Another word for “magic” is “spirit.”  The magic of Christmas is the Spirit of Christ. Harry Potter magic has swept the world and so can Christmas magic; a time when warmth, friendliness, giving and smiles work miracles – in Las Vegas, in Japan, in Utah, in Sweden, or anywhere else.  That is exactly the potion this tired, old earth needs.  A magical Merry Christmas!