Santa Claus Is Coming To Town

Transcript of a Sage Hill Live Fully Podcast conversation with Dr. Chip Dodd. Lightly edited for readability; speaker labels omitted.

You're listening to the Sage Hill podcast with Dr. Chip Dodd. Sage Hill is a social impact organization that helps people see who they are made to be so they can do what they're made to do. Hey, Chip. Hey, Steve. Hey. Christmas is like a few days away. Like, it's like right there. It is. Yeah. And, there's, like, a bunch of songs. Jingle Bells. We're singing Jingle Bells. We had a Christmas concert at our church recently, and we're singing all these Christmas carols. And the kids were singing and, you know, and, it made me think there's that there's that one song that is kinda weird and kinda fun, but also kinda scary. You know what I'm talking about? I sure do. Santa Claus is Coming to the Town. Written in 1933. Was it really? Yeah. Yeah.

Right in the middle of the Depression. It's a hyper control song. It's a song of abuse and trauma. Yeah. Now now You're not kidding. No. And I'm not kidding. But the the true hymns take us the true Christmas songs, the the Oh, holy The great ones are they're they're fun Mhmm. Or they take us to depths of pondering and gratitude, really. Right? Yeah. And we've talked about that before, even when we did a podcast not too long ago. What's your favorite Christmas song? Oh, Holy Night. Oh, Holy Night. In fact, you know I like Silent Night. I love Silent Night too. But, The Holy Night to me just takes everything I am and takes me to where the song says go. I mean, it's just amazing to me. Yeah. In fact, when my father passed away, he died, right before, Christmas Mhmm. Day. And, one of his favorite hymns or favorite Christmas songs was O Holy Night and that they sang it the day of his funeral. Mhmm. So it was it was really good. Yeah. Yeah. And then, you know, what was amazing is Sonya and I, in January went to, Disney World. And every time I turned around, the Disney's does music everywhere. Right. Every time I turned around, I bet I heard O Holy Night 20 times. Oh, wow. And so I said, there it is again. I'm like, it was really like, hey, you know, dad, holy night, Christmas. It was all kind of, sad and peaceful and appreciative. Like, wow. I'm I'm not a I'm, he's dead and yet there's still the touch of Emmanuel in all of this. God's still with me. God's still with me. Yeah. You know? Well, there's those weighty songs. How about that for Christmas?

And then there's songs like, Jingle Bell Rock. And then there's songs like, I'll have a blue. Oh, I love that one. Christmas. I love that. I love you. And then there's songs like Santa Claus is Coming to Town. Yeah. That song needs to be stopped. And and and I don't mean to be, politically correct or incorrect. I'm just saying No one would ever accuse you of being politically correct. Oh, okay. Well, good. But let me tell you incorrect. Listen to the song. Yeah. Because we we we talk so much about and Christmas is a time where we are more than any other time allowed to be fully present. You know, we can have, even as grown ups, the joys and the, the spontaneous craziness of children. We're a children as well. Children even get permitted to be children at Christmas. You know, to be, alive and questioning and irritating and he takes the sugar and so on. But the song says, I think it starts what is the first word of the song? You better watch out. Exactly. It's a song of threat. It says, you better watch out. You better not cry. You better perform. You better not cry. Better not pout. And I'm gonna explain it to you. I'm gonna tell you why. Oh, god. So so all of a sudden, I've got a finger pointed at me and there's somebody delivering a message and they're saying, I'm gonna tell you why. I'm about to explain something to you, little buddy. And once you sit down, I'm gonna tell you about life. I'm big. You're little. I'm right. You're wrong. I'm smart. You're I don't wanna hear a peep. I don't wanna hear a thing out of here. Out. No crying. No whining. So because and all because, Santa Claus is coming to town. You better get rid of your heart. And it goes on to the second stanza that starts out He sees you when you're sleeping. He sees sees you when you're sleeping. He knows when you're awake. He knows when you're awake. He knows if you've been bad or good. Oh, god. So be good for the sake of god. And we say for goodness sake, but, you know, the middle English, you know, sorta like the old English sorta translation of for goodness sakes really for the sake of god. And nowhere in the English language do we, put the phrase good and bad and transpose it to bad and good unless intentional. Mhmm. So it's a song of threat. And think about somebody watching you while you're asleep. Unless it's like you're like a Jim from,

To Kill a Mockingbird where daddy watched over me to make sure that the song said, this guy's watching and he's He can come down your chimney. He can come through your we can go through walls and keep an eye out for which he could do. List. He's checking it twice. Oh, that's the that's in the first place. Find out who's naughty or not. This guy's making a list of your performance, and he's not just looking at it. He's checking it twice to see if you rank and have the worth for him to bring you anything. So this song's sick. And you know what's amazing is, you know, it's so funny. I grew up singing it, but families get together. I know. I'm pulling it. And all all the heads are bobby back, but you better watch out. The parents look back at the kids like, you get it? You better not pout. You understand? So I'm making a list. He's making a list. He's checking it twice. He knows when you're awake. He knows when you're asleep. Uh-huh. You get it? So be and everybody's in the kids going back and forth with their heads, which means they're being brainwashed. Oh. And their heads are bobbing, singing something terrible. Now I don't think the person who wrote that song had some I'd let me tell you. Mischievous, dark, and I don't know that I don't no no level. But, however, think about 1933. I this is all hypothetical. I haven't done research, but I know it was written in 1933. It was written during a time of of of of of of deprivation in America. America. Especially in Middle America. Well, all over America. But, I mean, there was loss, fear, much desperation. Right '33 was right in the middle of it. I mean, we It was right after World War one.

Terrible famine. You know? Yeah. Herbert. No. No. We're yeah. But, like, we're on up into Hitler's under the navy. But you go, like, World War one happened, which was just no one thought war could be that way. First, making out warfare. Oh, oh, that's true. You talk about, like, a loss of belief after a while. That left came back with this thing that no one understood. Mhmm. Right? They called it they called, you know, PTSD now, but Mhmm. They were they were shell shocked. Right? Mhmm. And so you had this chunk of of culture just confused by life now and so on. Twenties happened. It was prosperity came, but it was material. Material prosperity. And but that was a bubble, economic bubble that collapsed. Right? And then you got this this great depression. Yeah. And so somebody writes a song

to kinda like, hey, kids. I get it. I know you want things. I know you wish for things. But guess what? You're not getting them. We don't have them. Let's just get through this. Yeah. And I just wonder if maybe You know, I you know, I love history. You love history. And I always studied the depression like American history, but I didn't really get it until we were cleaning out my grandmother's apartment after she died. Mhmm. This woman who lived through the depression, and she still, at 87 years old when she died a few years ago, had still saved every scrap of aluminum foil. Right? Yeah. Just like her family would have done in the depression. Yeah. Or she held on and hoarded things To ward off fear. Because the tragedy of what of poverty Yeah. Right, during that time was so

just so bad and so ubiquitous around our whole world. Mhmm. Yeah. And you know what's amazing too? I remember I was back in, there where we were growing grew grew up on another farm way back in the woods. There was a what was it? Like a shack. Yeah. I mean, a two room shack still standing, probably built twenty, thirties. I went in and they used to wallpaper with if you pour enough, it was newspaper just to just to keep some kind of insulation. And the the newspapers were from the thirties. And my historical recognition of the 30 taut was that everyone was in the same boat. But I I started reading the newspapers on the wall. Tennis championships, 3033, 34, cars being sold. So there was an economy occurring, but there was a pretty significant separation between, those who could keep going and those who would help them keep going and those who couldn't keep going. I mean, there's a real real conflict. But anyway I don't that song comes out of that era. Yes. It does. But I think it could come out of any era. What do you mean? Well, I mean, we can make a sociological comment related to the song, but control has always been around. And

Shutting people's presence down has always been around. Performance put into place Yeah. The song hasn't stayed around because of the depression. Exactly. The song stayed around through prosperity and poverty. Because we identify with It seems like a happy song, and it is a it is a tragic, threatening song that says you better perform or else you better get it right or else it it threatens a person to hide from their celebration Which is also or their tears. It not only threatens them, but it's also familiar. But let me tell you. What's amazing about that we're talking about songs. There's there's another song that is is likewise sung all over the world. And it it it fits in the same genre as Santa Claus is Coming to Town, but it has a reference point that's much more true and positive than Santa Claus is Coming to Town. But it and it's one of the more hated songs. It's it's a small world. Oh, god. More Disney. But listen to this. But right in the middle of that song, it says, it's a world of laughter and a world of tears. It's a world of hopes and a world of fears. Don't you think it's time, basically, that we're aware that since we all have so much to share? It really is a small world We're all the same. After all. Yeah. So and it say it says it says there is grief, there is celebration, there is hope, and there's disappointment. And guess what? We're all the same everywhere, made out of the same stuff. Let's share it. So you're saying that It's a Small World needs to become the new Christmas song? I'm saying that, boy, no. But I am saying that that that song is an invitation to, the union that occurs to being fully present versus Santa Claus is coming to town. It says act in a certain way so you can receive gifts. The the small world says the gifts come by being who you're made to be. So Christmas, I think, is a great time. And we're all made the same. Absolutely. And that's what I value you know, Jingle Bells is is great. It's funny. It's laughter. But O Holy Night is likewise great because it's it's pensive and pondering laughter and tears. You know, so Christmas, I think, so much is an invitation into a small world. Mhmm. It's an invitation. It's a world of laughter and a world of, tears. It's a world of hope and a world of fears. Don't you think it's time So much that we share. Share. Yeah. It's time we're aware. It's a small world after all. You know, even as, you you described, not too long ago, podcast we did, that you put Christmas lights on your tree house. Mhmm. And then, you know, no one can see us in here, but I I know I've known you for a long time. I watched you settle into remembering growing up. And, like, I know Heather just blessed you to do that because it's it's like you had to put Christmas lights on your treehouse to remember

that you were really a pretty neat kid. Mhmm. And then Christmas day, y'all had a pretty darn neat family. Mhmm. And you miss And you miss all y'all could have had and you're thankful for all you you did have. And all I do have. You know, and all you do have. And isn't it amazing there's that distance from where you're standing looking back? Oh, just From your house. So From the big house with all the bills. God's poetry. To a treasured place. Yeah. Mhmm. And, one of my favorite memories of Christmas. I think I still owe on the treehouse, actually. You still what? Owe on the treehouse. Do you really? You have a favorite yeah. What what am I It's a big treehouse. Yeah. Favorite memories? Christmas. We, there was time growing up on the you know, with cattle. At the time, we had two baby goats. And, things were things were kinda tough in the house. And, I I got my younger brother. I think I may have been 15, something. I got my younger brother and and I said, man, let's go down the barn. And I took the Bible, and I knew that Luke, story took a flashlight, took the Bible. We went in the stall where the baby goats were and set it on the hay bales. And I read the story, to to to him and to me with the goats in there, like like, to put us in the place, like, in the barn. Yeah. Yeah. We we created a manger and read the story by flashlight. And, because I wanted him to know it, and I wanted to tell somebody and hear it, and just wasn't gonna happen in our house that Christmas. Yeah. Or, you know, so Yeah. Great story. But isn't it, like, it's a treasured memory that also has some sadness with it? Even your story, the Christmas lights. If we're not willing to feel the sadness, we're not gonna have the joy Yeah. Of that which is most treasured and most memorable at Christmas. So our willingness to miss is the doorway into gratitude of what we have. You're willing to step into gratitude or self pity or resentment, won't we? Well, yeah. I guess it could go the other way. Yeah. But I say, I want Christmas owes me something now. I guess it'd be the impaired expression of the Yeah. Of not sitting in my salad. Oh, yeah. So trying to make something out again that it isn't, which demands the family be, in a certain place they may not be, other members. Everybody smile. Everybody make mama, daddy, son happy, whatever. But I I I'm not saying on any level, this isn't a crusade to stop Santa Claus's coming to town. You make it a small world of Christmas song. No. On any level. Because I think That's weird. That's exactly. So a small world would I think could make a person crazy if it's it's more than ten minutes. But that that little gem in there Yeah. It's amazing that little gem is hidden in monotony to to the point of irritability Mhmm. And insanity. Yeah. Do you know? So I'm not this is a crusade to get rid of the song, but what I am saying is that that song is sick and it's twisted. And it's And it's familiar to so many of us in our stories. And, yeah. Like our worth and Yeah. It's me and my performance. And the good things only come to us because of our performance Yeah. What we can do for others as opposed to who we are with. And so the world standards at Christmas with that song take precedence over God's standards, which is our presence in his presence. Yeah. Merry Christmas, Steve. Merry Christmas, Chip.

This is Stephen James, the executive director of Sage Hill Counseling. Thanks for listening to the Sage Hill podcast with Dr. Chip Dodd. If you or someone you know is struggling with addiction, anxiety, depression, or burnout, please reach out to the Center for Professional Excellence for Health. For more than twenty years, CBE's long term residential treatment programs have been helping professional men recover their lives, marriages, and families. To find out more, visit c p e nashville dot com.