The 4th CHRISTMAS GHOST

The  FOURTH CHRISTMAS GHOST?
The Ghost of Christmas Never To Be ... Again.
Perhaps Christmas will never be as innocent as we remember because we are not as innocent as we were then.
Families were bigger in the Christmases of the Past

Now, single child families are the norm ...where Mommy and Daddy may be separated, divorced, or never togetherin the first place.

LONELY is now the word that comes to mindat the mention of Christmas for many when once it used to be  JOY 
POVERTY
Christmas has become a season of sorrow for many women who can barely put food on the table, 
much less presents under the tree. 
My mother was one such person.

Weeknight movies were cheaper than weekend showings.  
On the way back to our basement apartment, 
we would walk down dark, scary streets holding hands
and singing our theme song, Side By Side:
Oh! We ain`t got a barrel of money
Maybe we`re ragged and funny
But we`ll travel along
Singing a song
Side by side
With no money for a tree, 

Mother scooped up the largest fallen branch from the lot selling them and brought it home.

Topped with shiny aluminum scraps from Hershey's kisses, 

it was just as wonderful to me as the one in New York's Time Square.

CHRISTMAS MAGIC
Can be conjured to push back the 4th Christmas Ghost, if we but cling to the truth that love and imagination
is within the heart of each of us to share 
with all those in our world who are going through harder times than they appear.
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Celebrate Christmas Eve in 1946 New Orleans.  The ghost of Charles Dickens recommends it!