Hello, everybody!!!
Thanksgiving is behind us (great parade as always, especially the Peanuts and Santa floats) and so is the fall finale of “This Is Us” (if you have not watched it yet, I have three words for you-ERIS BAKER. WOW.). So that brings us to that magical time of year again: my 25 Days of Christmas music countdown. Yay!!!
Found on Pinterest (original source unknown).
I am just starting to decorate my place, and I will not get my tree until next week, so I will start sharing pictures of my decor then. But I am definitely getting into the holiday spirit by listening to all-Christmas-music-all-the-time radio stations as well as researching holiday songs on YouTube. How about you? What is getting you in the holiday spirit?
To start us off, I went with the man I have loved and adored since I was 12 years old. He has been all over the news this last week for a few reasons. First, because the new issue of Esquire came out. Say it with me: SAAAAAA-WOOOOOOON.
Second, his Netflix special is set to air on Sunday, December 16 (see the trailer here), the day after his historic Tony award-winning Broadway show comes to an end after 15 months. If you were not lucky enough to see this show live (like I was, thank you God) or you need to see it again to savor every word, every note, every emotion (again, like me), then this is your chance. To me, the show was like his song “Jungleland”: so beautiful it hurt. And if you do not like my words, here are some from the NY Times (“There may never be anything as real and beautiful on Broadway” ) and Rolling Stone (“An intimate triumph”, “Compelling and profound”). Or choose your own words when you watch it for yourself.
Three, his Esquire interview dives deeper into his battle with depression and how his father’s late in life diagnosis as a paranoid schizophrenic made this legend have a conversation with his own three children about what is in their DNA. I have said this many times before, but it bears repeating: I love Bruce Springsteen for a multitude of reasons: His music, his poetry, his heart, his empathy. But his openness about his and his father’s struggles with mental illness have given this awful, debilitating and unbelievably scary disease a name and a face to be reckoned with. It has given it more attention, more conversation and more validity when in the past it was viewed as a weakness instead of an illness. Springsteen’s courage and forthrightness should (hopefully) bring to an end the fallacy and misunderstanding that this illness can be beat if only we were “stronger”. Wrong. Strong has no more effect on mental illness than placebos have on cancer. A disease must be treated, not simply willed away. So thank you, Bossman, for once again giving us exactly what we need with your carefully chosen and profound words. It is a debt no honest man can pay, to quote you.
So let’s celebrate this man and this season with his two contributions to holiday playlists everywhere.
“Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town”
I do not own the rights to anything. I am just sharing some things that I love with you 🙂
What are some of your favorite Christmas songs?
Until next time, happy listening!!!
Lilacs & Rust 