OT: My Christmas Wish

p@mast3rs wrote on 12/23/2005, 11:17 AM
Its that time of year again, where the little kid in all of us comes out. As Christmas quickly approaches, visions of new video gear and software dance in our head and dreams, we seem to truely forget the meaning of Christmas. Far too often, our lives are filled with worries of how we will pay our bills, worries of getting that perfect special Christmas gift for the ones we love, etc...

This Christmas, my wishes began with a Sony Z1 and Ininfitcam. Sadly, come Christmas morning, neither will be under the tree for me. Matter of fact, there will be no gifts under the tree for me. In the past, I would have been greatly bummed and then spend the week after Christmas being jealous and envious of others and the precious booty they scored under their tree.

This Christmas is different for me. My Christmas wish is something that everyone here on this forum and all over the world can give. You see, every year starting around December, we hear about this wonderful thing called "Christmas Cheer" and "The Christmas Spirit." Sadly enough, this seems to be th eonly time of the year that people even stop for a moment to acknowledge those that are less fortunate than they are. All of a sudden, we seem to care about charities and the Salvation Army more, maybe we kick a few bucks to the homeless pandhandler on the corner, etc... Then we go home and feel all warm and fuzzy because we did a good deed. What saddens me greatly is that for the rest of the year, we as the human race don't seem to care the same way. Now I am not saying everyone is this way. But as a whole, people are usually more generous and kind spirited up until Christmas day and then its back to way things were before the holiday season.

My wish is that in this upcoming year, instead of saving all of wonderful gestures and acts of kindness until the holiday season, that we all strive to become more like we are during the holidays throughout the year. While we cant save the entire world and help everyone less fortunate than us, we can indeed make a difference and not just during the holidays. Instead of caring about the elderly and their loneliness at Christmas, lets all start to care about the other 364 days that the elderly are lonely. Same goes for the children that are foster care or orphanages. To them Christmas is just another day that could be more special if they were able to spend it with those that gave them life.

My point is we all complain about whats unfair in our lives or piracy or a multitude of other things. When it comes down to it, there are a ton of people in this world that would gladly change positions with us in a heart beat and those people do not deserve to be forgotten on Christmas and any other day of the year.

I wish that in this upcoming year, that I may be blessed with the strength and creative imagination and more importantly, the oppotunities to make a difference in someone else's life so that if for only one day, be it Christmas or May 13 or July 23, that their quality of life and their happiness be improved even if for only a mere moment.

I ask the fine members of this forum to join me in makign an impact every chance we get.

May you and your families be blessed and safe during this holiday season and may we all take a serious moment and not forget those who will not have a posh Christmas dinner to enjoy or presents to open or the company of loved ones sharing in carols around the Christmas tree.May this newfound spirit inspire each and everyone of us to be better human beings and touch others.

Happy Holidays to all.

Comments

winrockpost wrote on 12/23/2005, 11:38 AM
Yeah while working at the soup kitchen feeding the homeless on Christmas eve is a great gesture , and I'm sure appreciated. Doing the same on a saturday in February is probably more helpful.
Please dont think I'm downplaying those who do this Generous Giving work.
Regardless ,I hope all have a safe , happy season. Merry Christmas , Happy Holidays, Happy Hanukkah to all.
Buon Natale !!
Lili wrote on 12/23/2005, 12:24 PM
Re: "sadly, there will be no gifts for me under the tree".

Maybe 'ol Santa will surprise you - think positive - it can't hurt.

A safe and happy holiday season to everyone in the Vegas forum:-)
lili
p@mast3rs wrote on 12/23/2005, 12:48 PM
nah, I already know ther wont be. Wife broke down last night because she felt bad that she didnt get me anything. Its the thought that counts. I am ok with that.

If my post inspires someone to help someone else, then thats the greatest gift I could get this year. :)
winrockpost wrote on 12/23/2005, 12:51 PM
Bet ya get a hug and a kiss,,, what could be better ?
NOTHING !!
fldave wrote on 12/23/2005, 12:54 PM
pmasters: Sounds like you received the great gift of empathy this year. The tree is not so empty, now, is it?

This year I gave more than ever in money, clothing, food and household items for the hurricane victims. As one who got hit by two major hurricanes the past year and a half, I knew I was still better off than most of the Katrina/Rita victims.

There are still lots of people in need, try to not forget about them, whether victims of tsunami, hurricane, earthquake, poverty, bad luck, poor judgement, etc.

Makes the heart feel good. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays all!
MH_Stevens wrote on 12/23/2005, 1:12 PM
Humbug; it's all just humbug. Get over it.

Ebenezer J Scrooge
JohnnyRoy wrote on 12/23/2005, 1:20 PM
> I ask the fine members of this forum to join me in makign an impact every chance we get.

You assume that we don’t. Many members of this forum volunteer our time and donate money and goods all year long not just at holidays or in times of crisis. So don’t assume your Christmas wish hasn’t already come true. We just don’t always talk about what we do. We simply DO IT.

Let us not forget that Christmas is about the birth of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. If you dedicate yourself to Christ and his teachings then every day is filled with Christmas cheer. Every time you are presented with a dilemma, you would ask yourself, “What would Jesus do?”. If you need inspiration, try attending mass every day (or minimally once a week) and receive Christ in the Eucharist. Pray to Jesus to make you a better contributor to your community and he will present the opportunity to do so.

Merry Christmas.

~jr
p@mast3rs wrote on 12/23/2005, 1:45 PM
""You assume that we don’t. Many members of this forum volunteer our time and donate money and goods all year long not just at holidays or in times of crisis. So don’t assume your Christmas wish hasn’t already come true. We just don’t always talk about what we do. We simply DO IT."

I dont believe I said that no one on the forum does anything to help. Some do, some dont. If you do, great. Those that dont are the ones I am trying to reach. Somaybe you shouldnt assume that I was referring to everyone and take the thread for what its worth. Just a simple statement encouraging those who dont to please start.

And if you read the third paragraph again, you will see that I stated that Im not saying everyone is this way. So there was no assumption made on my part.
TomE wrote on 12/23/2005, 1:52 PM
Merry Christmas To all!

Thanks to all who have asked, and answered questions on this forum and have displayed their obviously generous hearts to us in this small way. I am sure it is only the tip of the iceberg and that they also help others in matters outside of a video editing software program.

TomE
winrockpost wrote on 12/23/2005, 1:59 PM
And I was trying to be so pc,, screw it.
I'm gettin a canon hdv under the tree & proud of it,
Peace to all.
p@mast3rs wrote on 12/23/2005, 2:01 PM
Congrats and we all expect to see some footage once its unwrapped :)
winrockpost wrote on 12/23/2005, 2:03 PM
thanks patrick,, have a great time with your family,, beats any material bullshit, trust me
p@mast3rs wrote on 12/23/2005, 2:13 PM
Thats definitely what I am thrilled about. My youngest daughter's first Christmas and finally the two older ones (3 and almost 2) get excited when they see presents. Tons of Toy Story and Dora the Explorer stuff this year. Its going to be awesome.
Spot|DSE wrote on 12/23/2005, 4:26 PM
OK, JR....you asked for it. :-)
For those that don't know JR too well, he recently received an award from the President of the United States for his dedication and selfless activity in community service. (no, I'm not kidding)

I'm aware of several in the Vegas community that do a lot of community time on a year around basis because on occasion, they privately contact us for help, software, books, hardware, time, money, or whatever can be given. We also see folks post from time to time about service projects. I'd wager that this community, like others in the creative world, is exceptionally giving of their time or resources to others. Just mere participation in this forum is a strong indication of how many folks feel about sharing time and support for other people. It was pretty thrilling to see that in the various video communities that I frequent, more than $100,000.00 was raised in donations and kind for hurricane victims. If nothing else, 2005 will go out in my memory as being a year where we've witnessed a lot of selfless acts by others in trouble or less fortunate.
Looking forward to a great 2006!
MH_Stevens wrote on 12/23/2005, 4:30 PM
I for one refuse to say "Happy Holidays" and I have noticed that if you have the courage to say "Happy Christmas" the recipient responds very warmly seemingly relieved they do not need be politically correct for once.

Michael

FrigidNDEditing wrote on 12/23/2005, 4:33 PM
Well, I say Merry Christmas to all, and to all and good night (or morning if you're on the other side of the world). OH!! - and let's not forget Happy Festivus!!!! ;-)

BTW - Happy hannukah and qwanza etc... to all those that celebrate it.

Dave
FrigidNDEditing wrote on 12/23/2005, 4:42 PM
MH - I Couldn't agree more. I say Merry Christmas, like it or lump it.

I know lots of guys that get so sick fo the PC nonsense that goes on around the holidays that are in no way religious (to say the least) that they just about cuss ppl. out that won't say Merry Christmas. It's kinda funny/sad really :) :(

Anyway - I always say it, and I think that if it offends someone, that's too bad. People do "acceptable" things that offend me all the time, I just live with it, ppl. have been living with it for thousands of years. So, I say get over, and deal with it like the rest of the world has for all of time.

Dave