The eNotes Blog Ten Writers Wrap UpChristmas

Ten Writers Wrap UpChristmas Christmas is a time when we all want to express just the right words about how much we love one another, to celebrate the year that was, and to anticipate and hope for the future. Here are ten sentiments by writers who may reflect what you are feeling during this holiday season. 1. In the late 1800s, poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote these words in his poem Christmas Bells: And in despair I bowed my head; There is no peace on earth, I said; For hate is strong, And mocks the song Of peace on earth, good-will to men! Then pealed the bells more loud and deep: God is not dead, nor doth He sleep; The Wrong shall fail, The Right prevail, With peace on earth, good-will to men. Sadly, our world is in more turmoil now than it was in Longfellows day, yet we all still hold on to the hope that one day, peace and love will eventually prevail. 2.   â€Å"Hey, great idea: if you have kids, give your partner reading vouchers next Christmas. Each voucher entitles the bearer to two hours reading time *while the kids are awake*. It might look like a cheapskate present, but parents will appreciate that it costs more in real terms than a Lamborghini.†Ã‚   ― Nick Hornby, The Polysyllabic Spree 3. A lovely thing about Christmas is that its compulsory, like a thunderstorm, and we all go through it together.   ~ Garrison Keillor 4.   Christmas to a child is the first terrible proof that to travel hopefully is better than to arrive.   ~ Stephen Fry 5. Maybe Christmas, the Grinch thought, doesnt come from a store.   ~ Dr. Seuss 6.   â€Å"One can never have enough socks, said Dumbledore. Another Christmas has come and gone and I didnt get a single pair. People will insist on giving me books.†Ã‚   ― J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone 7.   â€Å"One of the most glorious messes in the world is the mess created in the living room on Christmas day. Dont clean it up too quickly. ― Andy Rooney 8.   â€Å"He went to the church, and walked about the streets, and watched the people hurrying to and for, and patted the children on the head, and questioned beggars, and looked down into the kitchens of homes, and up to the windows, and found that everything could yield him pleasure. He had never dreamed of any walk, that anything, could give him so much happiness. † ― Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol 9. â€Å"Thanksgiving was nothing more than a pilgrim-created obstacle in the way of Christmas; a dead bird in the street that forced a brief detour.† ― Augusten Burroughs, You Better Not Cry: Stories for Christmas 10.   â€Å"Let the children have their night of fun and laughter. Let the gifts of Father Christmas delight their play. Let us grown-ups share to the full in their unstinted pleasures before we turn again to the stern task and the formidable years that lie before us, resolved that, by our sacrifice and daring, these same children shall not be robbed of their inheritance or denied their right to live in a free and decent world.   Winston Churchill, Christmas Eve Message, 1941