{"id":196,"date":"2011-12-15T06:38:00","date_gmt":"2011-12-15T13:38:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/69.195.124.95\/~redletu4\/blue-christmas-for-those-who-have-lost\/"},"modified":"2011-12-15T06:38:00","modified_gmt":"2011-12-15T13:38:00","slug":"blue-christmas-for-those-who-have-lost","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davidrupert\/blue-christmas-for-those-who-have-lost\/","title":{"rendered":"Blue Christmas: For those who have lost"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"A<\/a>Image via Wikipedia<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Listen to the radio and you\u2019ll hear Elvis croon his Christmas classic.\n

<\/p><\/span><\/div>\n


<\/span><\/div>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll have a blue Christmas without you.\u201d<\/i>\n

<\/p><\/span><\/div>\n


<\/span><\/div>\n
Nancy Fransen, who blogs at Out of My Alleged Mind, wrote about the loss of her father, and the wistfulness of her mother this time of year. In her post, \u201cYou can dance if you want,<\/a>\u201d\u00a0 she reflected on the Elvis classic song, Blue Christmas,<\/i> and her general disdain for it.\u00a0It makes her mother cry.<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n
While there is plenty of merriment in the air, you\u2019ll often catch a dissenting look in someone\u2019s eyes. You\u2019ll notice the wistful way they remember. Every Christmas carol, every celebration, every decoration holds a memory that is at the same time both fulfilling and painful.<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n
Christmas, we\u2019re told, \u00a0is a time for cheer and joy. It\u2019s a season for \u00a0wishes and dreams come true. But for those who have experienced loss it\u2019s simply a memory of what they don\u2019t have. Try as they can, the Christ child and redemption never seems to \u00a0overcome the sense of hollow pain.\n

<\/p><\/span><\/div>\n


<\/span><\/div>\n
Nancy has a wise solution. \u00a0Embrace both worlds.<\/i>\n

<\/p><\/span><\/div>\n


<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
\u201cMaybe the best way to do so is by fully entering into the blue-ness of the season, daring ourselves to tell the truth about what\u2019s messed up, broken, and sad in our lives,\u201d she writs.\n

<\/p><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

<\/div>\n
I can understand the logic of this.\n

<\/p><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

<\/div>\n
You never know the joy of being found until you are lost. \u00a0You\u2019ll never know grace until you need it. You\u2019ll never run to a Savior until you realize you need one. The twist of loss and gain is locked in a holy embrace. It all defies explanation until you walk in it.\n

<\/p><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

<\/div>\n
For me, I never squinted at the sun until I emerged from pitch black. \n

<\/p><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n


<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
And really, Christmas is all about a piercing light that broke the endless, hopeless litany of a people without hope.<\/span><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\nThe glad tidings sound ever-so-sweet compared to the chords of a world that can\u2019t carry a tune.<\/span>\n<\/div>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n
What songs make you blue? Which ones lift \u00a0you up?<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Enhanced<\/a><\/div>\n
Please, share with a friend if you feel moved.
\nRead all past issues at http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davidrupert<\/div>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Image via Wikipedia Listen to the radio and you\u2019ll hear Elvis croon his Christmas classic. \u201cI\u2019ll have a blue Christmas without you.\u201d Nancy Fransen, who blogs at Out of My Alleged Mind, wrote about the loss of her father, and the wistfulness of her mother this time of year. In her post, \u201cYou can dance […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2375,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[137,210,371],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-196","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-christmas-depression","category-depression","category-grief-loss-and-bereavement"],"yoast_head":"\nBlue Christmas: For those who have lost<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Image via WikipediaListen to the radio and you\u2019ll hear Elvis croon his Christmas classic. \u201cI'll have a blue Christmas without you.\u201d Nancy Fransen, who\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davidrupert\/blue-christmas-for-those-who-have-lost\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Blue Christmas: For those who have lost\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Image via WikipediaListen to the radio and you\u2019ll hear Elvis croon his Christmas classic. \u201cI'll have a blue Christmas without you.\u201d Nancy Fransen, who\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davidrupert\/blue-christmas-for-those-who-have-lost\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"David Rupert\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"www.facebook.com\/davidrupert\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2011-12-15T13:38:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/6\/6e\/YoungElvisPresley.jpg\/300px-YoungElvisPresley.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"David Rupert\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@rupzip\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"David Rupert\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davidrupert\/blue-christmas-for-those-who-have-lost\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davidrupert\/blue-christmas-for-those-who-have-lost\/\",\"name\":\"Blue Christmas: For those who have lost\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davidrupert\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2011-12-15T13:38:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2011-12-15T13:38:00+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davidrupert\/#\/schema\/person\/1ee971d3244e1f67a487a31f55d37c81\"},\"description\":\"Image via WikipediaListen to the radio and you\u2019ll hear Elvis croon his Christmas classic. \u201cI'll have a blue Christmas without you.\u201d Nancy Fransen, who\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davidrupert\/blue-christmas-for-those-who-have-lost\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davidrupert\/blue-christmas-for-those-who-have-lost\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davidrupert\/blue-christmas-for-those-who-have-lost\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davidrupert\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Blue Christmas: For those who have lost\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davidrupert\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davidrupert\/\",\"name\":\"David Rupert\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davidrupert\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davidrupert\/#\/schema\/person\/1ee971d3244e1f67a487a31f55d37c81\",\"name\":\"David Rupert\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davidrupert\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/47e7c27dc78a66ace4b19bb00da8bccc?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/47e7c27dc78a66ace4b19bb00da8bccc?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"David Rupert\"},\"description\":\"I am a communication professional who has a passion for people. 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