Things I never thought I’d say

Thank heavens for the Wiggles.

I can’t believe I just said that.

The Wiggles, for those living under a rock (or without child) are an Australian music troupe that does live shows for kids. Like, little kids. Two to six, maybe, if they’re a happy/slightly slow six. The songs are mind-numbingly stupid and utterly addictive, the comedy is Bozo-esque (in the classic clown sense), and the sfx are from circa 1980.

These days they hang out on Playhouse Disney, the cable channel for tots — though that age range varies depending on the time of day. There’s a lot of fine stuff on PD, but some of it is of the “Hey, Katherine, wouldn’t you rather play with this broken glass than make me listen to the ‘Dorothy the Dinosaur’ song again?” sort. Which includes the Wiggles.

That said, they will always have a spot in my heart.

See, this time of year, we have become so sensitive to Leaving People Out, or coming across as Religious Mad Dog Bigots, or Alienating Some of the Audience, that we have not only become all-inclusive in what we celebrate — Christmas + Hannukah + Kwanzaa + Ramadan + Solstice — we’ve become all-exclusive, too. Daring shows actually mention those holidays and holy weeks/months/periods. But most of them simply let them blur into This Is The Time of Snowy Festivity, without any reason for why we should be festive or contemplative or why the heck gifts are involved.

Well, there’s all that Santa thing, of course. He’s always good for non-sectarian laughs and revelry. Pundits don’t much complain about the over-commercialization of Christmas any more, because gift-giving and Santa stuff has become the safe ground, the non-controversial feel-good bits that we can all agree on without feeling like anyone might be offended.

So imagine my amazement when on the Wiggles “Yule Be Wiggling” special, they sang (among other things) Christmas songs. Not (just) Santa songs, or Rudolph, or snow songs. Not just lots-o-presents songs. Carols. Songs that mention the Nativity, Wise Men, mangers, Bethlehem, angels … heck, that use the J-word.

I mean — how utterly … Christmassy.

I don’t know. Maybe it’s because they’re from Australia, which strikes me as a much more homogeneous, much more openly-Euro-centric country than the US these days. But, damn, it was really refreshing to hear carols sung on TV, on a show to be watched by kids.

I mean, I don’t want every show this time of year to be Christmas/Jesus/Nativity-centric. There are other holidays going on. And there are non-holiday-celebrating people, too. I wouldn’t mind seeing kids shows that focus on Hannukah. Or Kwanzaa. Or anything else being celebrated at the time. I don’t mind seeing the Rudolph special, or Frosty the Snow-Man, or non-religious stuff, too. Indeed, if it were all Jesus-and-Mary, it would be cloying, boring, and, yes, even a bad thing.

But it was nice to see some Christmas stuff that touched on tradition and history and the religious roots of the day. It would be nice if Christmas, per se, were not The Holiday That Dare Not Speak Its Name. That people could openly celebrate it in the media without being looked upon as Right-Wing Christian Fundamentalist Oppressors and Insult-Mongerers Of Those Who Ain’t.

Or maybe it’s just me. But a cheer, at least, to the Wiggles.

Now, about that umpteenth rendition of “Dorothy the Dinosaur” ….