Today in Spain.

Dear reader, There are things about life in America that bothers me. We have it good here, as far as material wealth is concerned, but where living is concerned, we are dirt poor. For example, as I type this, I am watching a live broadcast (via the net) out of Valencia, Spain. The fact that I can see live TV from half way around the earth, while sitting in my study here at home is evidence of our material wealth. What I am seeing on that station proves that we have forgotten how to live! Today is the day of the three kings in Spain. You know the three kings that came to visit the Christ child? We often call them the three wise men. Well, today in Spain, as they do every year, they celebrate the day of the kings. They had a parade for the kings as they entered the city square. The streets were lit up like any great Christmas décor should be. There was pageantry as the kings were welcomed to the city. There was joy as the kings delivered gifts to all the children. There was music and fire works.. this thing was bigger and better then the ball dropping in New York City at midnight. And the final act? The three kings present themselves to the Joseph and Mary and the baby Jesus! This is a beautiful tradition! It is glorious, glamorous, and edifying! It was great to see, and I’m very happy that I found it. But could you imagine such a thing happening here in the US? If we proposed such a display, the only thing I think we would see on TV is the protestors and the lawyers for the ACLU decrying the violation of civil rights or separation of church and state or some such nonsense as that. Why do they always do that? What is wrong with celebrating? What is wrong with bringing gifts to children? What is wrong with parades and lights, and music and such? Nothing! We do it for stupid reasons. We hold parades for the city to honor the city leaders. We have lights and music and such to mark the annual roll over of the clock. So why not celebrate an event that impacted history and is still the core reason behind so much of our customs and traditions? Why can’t we live and let live? But most of all, why have we allowed those who don’t know how to live, to beat us down and prevent us from living?