Christmas is a time of giving (and, by extension, of receiving). And it is a time when we are often asked what we want for Christmas. Obviously, we want something that will last, not just for the Christmas period.
While teaching a music class of young children in 1944, Donald Yetter Gardner noticed that almost all of them were missing teeth so he wrote a short ditty, entitled ‘All I Want for Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth’, including these lines: “Everybody stops and stares at me. These two teeth are gone as you can see. I don't know just who to blame for this catastrophe! But my one wish on Christmas Eve is as plain as it can be! All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth”.
A few years later it was recorded (several times) and became a number one hit in the pop charts.
What many singers would want for Christmas is a Number One hit song and there are many contenders for the best one. There have been ‘White Christmas’, ‘Blue Christmas’, ‘Last Christmas’, Happy Christmas (War is Over)’, ‘Merry Christmas Everybody’ and ‘Do they know it’s Christmas time’.
There is, however, one other that has had over thirty cover versions - including versions sung by Justin Bieber, Dolly Parton and the cast of Glee, even by the ‘Tonight Show’ host Jimmy Fallon - since it was first recorded in 1995 by Mariah Carey. So, yes, sing along: ‘All I Want for Christmas’.
The song starts with “I don't want a lot for Christmas. There is just one thing I need (and I) Don't care about the presents underneath the Christmas tree. I don't need to hang my stocking there upon the fireplace. Santa Claus won't make me happy with a toy on Christmas Day.”
So, she is certainly not fussy; she just wants one thing, that is all. She enjoys the Christmas lights, yes; she likes the sound of children's laughter, for sure; she delights that everyone is singing, yes; but there is one thing she really wants and needs: “All I want for Christmas is you”. That is all she wants: You!
So, what do we want for Christmas? I will tell you what I want for Christmas; I want you, or rather I want U. I want U where U stands for Understanding. I want you to have Understanding why we do sport at school; I want you (players, coaches, schools, Boards, parents, spectators, National Sports Bodies) to have Understanding of school sport.
I want children to understand sport is meant to be, above all, fun (“Laughter fill the air”); I want them to understand that sport is for their good and for good, for life.
I want coaches to understand that they are first and foremost teaching life skills; I want them to understand they are to develop above all the five Cs (Critical Thinking, Creativity, Communication, Collaboration, Character) of twenty-first century learning in their pupils; I want them to understand that to do that they must be silent and seated in fixtures; I want them to understand they are to give all children, not just the best, a chance to play.
I want parents to understand not to ask for the score straightaway; I want parents to understand they are not coaching their children nor are they to question referees. I want schools to understand they should not speak of unbeaten records as learning must take place in winning and losing; I want schools to understand there is no need to offer scholarships to children in other schools where they have equal opportunities.
I want spectators to understand the importance of setting a good example by their behaviour at fixtures. I want National Sports Bodies to understand the importance of Long-Term Player development, not crash course early childhood advancement. I want them to understand how important it is to develop the whole child, not just the child’s sporting ability.
What do we want for Christmas? Such a question is asking us what we find most important, the biggest priority, at this time. “All I want” implies it is not much (“I just want this – that’s all, nothing else, it is not too much to ask, is it?”) but it is actually everything. I want all of us to grasp this and to want it too. Understanding is everything. All I want for Christmas is You – U. And I do not want it just for Christmas.
I want it the whole year round, the whole life through. In fact, I will give my eye teeth, not my front teeth, for that.