December 01, 2015 
sharon 
A Charlie Brown Christmas celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, and last night ABC ran it with a feature on the history of the special’s creation. Did you know that Coca-Cola contacted Charles Schulz’s team to express interest in sponsoring a Peanuts holiday special, and he and his animators put the basic story together for a pitch in just a couple of days?
Funny that such an beloved holiday movie, one that we all grew up with, takes as its theme (if softened by animation) very adult struggles with self-doubt and seasonal blues. Don’t we all have an internal Charlie Brown…I guess you were right, Linus. I shouldn’t have picked this little tree. Everything I do turns into a disaster. I guess I really don’t know what Christmas is all about...especially when we’re writing or trying to do something creative. Everything can turn into a competition – write the best manuscript, make the most important lists, get the shiniest awards – and meanwhile we’re full of self-doubt.
Oh brother…
Here’s an idea! Try to laugh off the Lucys in your life, the people barking orders, pointing out your flaws, or trying to hold you accountable to arbitrary standards that aren’t what really matters to you.
Lucy: What has Beethoven got to do with Christmas? Everyone talks about how “great” Beethoven was. Beethoven wasn’t so great.
Schroeder: What do you mean Beethoven wasn’t so great?
Lucy: He never got his picture on bubblegum cards, did he? Have you ever seen his picture on a bubblegum card? Hmmm? How can you say someone is great who’s never had his picture on bubblegum cards?
Don’t worry about getting your picture on a bubble gum card! Or finding the perfect pink aluminum tree, or writing a world-changing story in a couple of days. Surround yourself with friends like Linus who will believe in your talent, give you valuable feedback, and encourage you to do work you believe in.
I never thought it was such a bad little tree. It’s not bad at all, really.
Maybe it just needs a little love.
Great post, Sharon-and it’s amazing that a lot of the stuff Charlie was moaning about back in the Johnson Administration is now highly sought after or has an entirely different meaning; aluminum Christmas trees are as much a collector’s item as a ’65 Mustang (although not as pricey) and lighting up your house and block is almost a statement of patriotism… “Oh, so you worship a God who doesn’t allow fun of any kind and is so malevolent he can barely stand the sight of his own believers… Well, check THIS out!!!” The 2nd Charlie Brown Xmas special was pretty good too-as an odd post-thought to all this, I actually met Charles Schultze back in the 90’s when he came into the Carmel Waldenbooks where I worked; Peanuts had kind of vanished from the American scene for awhile, and he’d lost his religion in the gloom of later life (so I read later) and he wasn’t too cheerful. Still, one hopes he enjoyed the Peanuts revival from the good Methodist heaven (or wherever he ended up) he now dwells in, where he’s trying to get Thomas Kinkade to cut back on the firewater and stop swearing so much. Happy Holidays anyway…………..
\”Funny that such an beloved holiday movie, one that we all grew up with, takes as its theme (if softened by animation) very adult struggles with self-doubt and seasonal blues.\”That was the whole point of the \”Peanuts\” strip: it was supposed to be about little kids, but they all had very adult problems. The disconnect was the source of the humor.Of course, I\’m old enough to remember when \”Peanuts\” was actually funny….