Tuesday, December 24, 2019

Christmas Steve


Not everyone greets Christmas with a sparkling smile and open arms.

I have no reason to believe the character Randy Stonehill created in his song, "Christmas at Denny's," is named Steve, but it makes for a semi-clever title for this post.


And the song makes for an empathetic look at a certain demographic not having a holly, jolly Christmas this year.

They got Christmas Muzak
Piped in through the ceiling
And the refills of coffee
Are always for free
And the waitress on graveyard
And the surly night manager
They're wishing that all of us losers would leave
There's a star on the sign
At the Texaco Station
Like the star long ago
On that midnight clear
As I look all around
At these cold, empty faces
I doubt that you'd find many wise men here

And I'm dreaming about
A silent night
Holy night
When things were all right
And I'm dreaming about
How my life could have been
If only, if only, if only...
But somewhere down the road
I gave up that fight
Merry Christmas
It's Christmas at Denny's tonight

Once I had a home
And a wife and a daughter
Had a company job
Earning middle-class pay
Then Lisa got killed
By a car near the schoolyard
And my wife started drinking
Just to get through each day
I will never forget that little red wagon
Turning to rust all alone in the rain
One morning I flagged down
A truck on the highway
I just couldn't bear to go back there again

And I'm dreaming about
A silent night
Holy night
When things were all right
And I'm dreaming about
How my life could have been
If only, if only, if only...
Well, it's not just the blind man
Who loses his sight
Merry Christmas
It's Christmas at Denny's tonight

And they say
Life's made of cruel circumstance
Fate plays the tune and we dance
Dance till we drop
In the dust and we're gone
And the world just goes on

The cop at the counter
He's the guardian angel
He watches these orphans
Through dark, mirrored shades
And the register rings
Like a bell sadly tolling
For the fools we've become
And the price that we paid
Oh when I was a boy
I believed in Christmas
Miracle season to make a new start
I don't need no miracle, sweet baby Jesus
Just help me find
Some kind of hope in my heart

And I'm dreaming about
A silent night
Holy night
When things were all right
And I'm dreaming about
How my life could have been
If only, if only, if only...
But I'll still be here
At the morning's first light
Merry Christmas
It's Christmas at Denny's tonight
©1982 King of Hearts Music


Truth is...if you're feeling like Steve this year, maybe all you really need right now is the knowledge that you are not alone in your pain. There are people who understand. Maybe that's a good enough first step toward finding some kind of hope in your heart.

2 comments:

  1. Dear Lord, help us to reach out to the hurting. The story may be different, but there are many dealing with pain like this right now.

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