The SGA at my school sponsors a Christmas door decorating contest every year. We missed it last year (on account of a new advisor), but it is back this year. The first period in a classroom gets the task of decorating their door with prizes awarded for creative, spiritual, and overall. My AP US class is my first period this year, and we brainstormed for eight minutes this morning (that is all the time I could spare). Most of the ideas involved a nude Ben Franklin. I should have never mentioned Franklin's tendency towards naturism (he called it taking an "air bath")as it has become a running gag in class. The one good idea involved using the famous Washington Crossing the Delaware painting and inserting cut out pictures of the members of the class in place of the characters on the painting. I would be Washington. Washington crossed the Delaware on Christmas night to surprise the Hessians on the other side leading to one of Washington's finest victories of the war. The painting is, of course, pure patriotic fluff, but wonderful fluff all the same.
I thought I would give you a taste of doors past this week. Only my first two doors failed to win, but only because my first could not win and the second was bad. That first door was also created by an AP US History class. We simply taped a single piece of white paper to the door that stated:
In protest of the crass commercialization of Christmas, our class would like to humbly present the idea that Christmas is not about contests but is, instead, about the birth of our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ:
In Class, December 7, 2001. The unanimous Declaration of the six united students of AP US History,
When in the course of Christmas events, one class decides to separate itself from the bonds of Christmas Door Contests, it becomes necessary to declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all doors are created equal, that they are endowed by their maker with certain swinging motions, that among these are locking, opening and closing.
That whenever any form of contest becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the class to alter or abolish it, and to institute new contests, laying its foundation upon such principles as to them shall seem most likely to effect an understanding of the true meaning of Christmas.
We, therefore, the Representatives of the AP United States of America class, in General Congress, assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of this contest, declare that Christmas is not about contests, decoration, winning or losing, or prizes. Instead, Christmas is and shall ever be about the promise of redemption of fallen man by the birth of the Jesus.
And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, Our Fortunes and our Sacred Door.
The entire class signed it, and we lost. The judges even went to the extraordinary measure of calling us out over the intercom when announcing the winners. They said something to the effect, "Any doors that removed themselves from the contest could not be awarded a prize." They had a point but missed ours.
Peace
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