'As long as we have we'

I was getting my moptop hair cut this morning at Fantastic Sam's by a nice lady and mother of three from Fairview.

It is a small, out of place community in the largely affuent Williamson County(TN), prominently inhabited by country music stars, pro football and hockey athletes and big-bonus sales people and corporate executives.

Still, even here as in other parts of the country, Christmas is going to be tight this year, more uncomfortable than in memory.

How many presents do you buy your children when not as many consumers are buying goods from your employer; or your salary and hours have been cut; or you're going to lose your job?

Where do you put presents when there is no house to put a tree in? Home foreclosures continue to skyrocket.

So this Christmas season has not been one of great joy for many American and Tennessee adults who happen to be parents of children with lots of wishes for Santa. And these worries will not be resolved with an extra job or a goose that lays the Golden egg from the local msll pet store.

The defining characteristic of Christmas 2008 will be attitude, and how we Americans as families choose to celebrate that union more than what's under or not under the tree.

"This could be the closest Christmas of all," the stylist said as she wreslted with my cow lick. "We'll find out what really matters."

Yes, what matters is each other, magnificently displayed in Dr. Suess's How the Gringh Stole Christmas. Remember, there will always be a reason to celebrate "as long as we have we".