The Grinch Who Stole Christmas

In a house in Webster, NY, a man sat musing.  His deceased mother left money to the Fire Department. That was so unfair.  The cops treated him badly and that was unfair. The whole world was against him so he vowed to get even.

In Dr. Seuss' beloved book, The Grinch stood on a hill looking down on Who Ville. Those Whos were so noisy.  That annoyed him. They sounded so cheerful and that grated on his nerves.  Maybe he could fix it so that they were no longer cheerful.  His heart was two sizes too small.

 

The man started writing notes.  He hated the world.  He wanted to kill as many people as possible and set much of the world on fire.

The Grinch sneaked into town at night.  He dressed like Santa and stole all the Who gifts and decorations.  He would show them.  They would not be cheerful when they got up Christmas morning.

The man killed his sister and set his house on fire.  When the fire department showed up, he started shooting, hitting firemen and law officers. Two died, others were injured.

On Christmas morning, the Whos gathered in the town circle.  They joined hands and sang together.  They did not sound unhappy at all.

Since the firemen could not start fighting the fire because of the shooter, it spread.  It ended up destroying seven houses and damaging others.

The Grinch realized that Christmas was not about gifts and decorations.  “Perhaps it means a little bit more.”

The shooter went down to the lake and shot himself.

The Grinch’s heart grew.  He brought all the gifts back.  He even cut the roast beast at the Who Christmas Feast.

The Grinch’s heart grew and the shooter’s heart shrank.  In 2013, we can let our hearts grow larger or sit and muse vengeance against all who wronged us, in reality or the imagination.

We can make the world a better place.  We can be remembered as someone who ruined many other lives and left a trail of destruction.  Let’s resolve to let our hearts grow this year and leave a legacy of good.

Happy New Year to you and yours.