Christmas in Japan

I am shocked at the wave of Christmas that has swept through Japan in spite of the fact that Japan does not celebrate this particular holiday. It shows the power of consumerism. Some of it is quite silly. Old Christmas tunes are appearing over store radio systems despite the fact that they are in English. Lots of places have decorations that do everything except portray the classic Christmas spirit as so many Americans tend to envision it. Every time mom sees another display, I hear a groan and cluck of distaste at the sad imitation of our own Christmas decorations at home. These are 2 trees that are at the nearby mall. The crystal one had a flute player by it today and we actually found it to be somewhat tasteful. However, the other one is quite heinnous and mom insisted I take a picture of it because it was so ugly and horrible. It is hard to imagine Christmas approaching while we are here. I think mom misses a Christmas at home more than any of us. I can't help but be overly excited for Christmas in New Zealand.