By Steven Norris
We stretched the toboggans over our ears, wrapped the scarves around our necks, and piled into the church van armed with a stack of lyric sheets and heart full of Christmas cheer. Arriving at the first house, we circled the steps leading up to the front door while a volunteer pressed the doorbell. When the door inched its way open and an unsuspecting grandma peeked around the corner, we broke into our best rendition of the perennial favorite, “Joy to the World.”
Thankfully, we had brought the music minister along to help keep us somewhat close to a common pitch, but the quality of music was overshadowed by the intensity of our joy. For the next ten minutes, we serenaded our neighbor with the story of Christmas — of angels singing, cattle lowing, drummer boys drumming, and wise men journeying. The smiles and laughter were contagious as we traveled from house to house, surprising unsuspecting friends with the joy of the season.
I miss those simple days — days without pretense or elaborate staging. Today, it feels like everything is a production, complete with lights, choreography, fog machines, and backing tracks. Fading are the traditions of the true amateur, popping up in unsuspecting places to sing and make merry for the sole purpose of eliciting smiles of delight and wonder.
The art of the surprise attack has a long history in military history. During the American Revolution, Francis Marion (better known as “Swamp Fox”) was renown for his use of guerrilla warfare tactics to disrupt the British supply lines and wear down their defenses. In the face of an army so vast, these tactics created a way for a ragtag group of passionate soldiers to make an enormous impact on the final outcome of the war.
What would happen if a ragtag group of friends decided that they would engage in some guerrilla joy-fare this week? No elaborate plans. No long nights of rehearsals. No carefully crafted harmonies. I am talking about regular, everyday folks looking for ways to spread joy to someone in an unsuspecting way this week.
Pay for another person’s meal by surprise. Give an extra generous tip for a hard-working server. Wear a gaudy Christmas Sweater and light-up Rudolph nose to work, just to make others smile. Maybe it could look like making a large batch of hot chocolate, filling up enough travel mugs for the whole family, and piling in the car to go look at Christmas lights around town. Maybe it looks like putting on some Christmas favorites from the Rat Pack and choosing to slow dance with your significant other in the light of the Christmas tree. Maybe you could gather with friends and go Christmas caroling through the neighborhood. The possibilities are only limited by your imagination.
The point is this: spreading joy doesn’t have to cost you anything. In a world battling the legion of despair and hopelessness, we can choose to fight back in unsuspecting ways. We can choose to spread joy, laughter, smiles, and good cheer — one surprise Christmas carol at a time.