Old Times, Hard Times, Good Times.....we should be grateful for what we have!!!

Here are the Blakely Brothers in 1930 with restored toys going out for delivery to poor children in the Los Angeles area(note the lack of snow).  The other photo from 1902 says to help send Santa down 10,000 chimneys in Chicago by donating what you can.

In 1903, the Salvation Army is typically hard at work to help 25,000 poor folks enjoy a Christmas dinner.  The next photo from 1938 shows unemployed workers trying to keep warm next to a post Christmas castaway tree.  They were kids once and had a real Christmas....now they are just trying to keep their ears from freezing.....but they still have a Christmas tree...Oh...the power of Christmas!!!

Here are some kids from 1906 receiving Christmas baskets with the basic necessities of life included......they sure looked happy and weren't disappointed that they probably didn't get what they really wanted.  Kids today don't realize how lucky they are...!

A very interesting 1947 Kresge`s Department Store front window display.  The kids could pose with Santa for a photo.

This is what Christmas was all about in 1945.  A very happy soldier returning home to his sweetheart to a very Merry Christmas.

This 1935 photo shows a much better time for this young man.  What kid wouldn`t want an electric train under his tree.

If you are a child of the 1950`s you will surely know this couple.  It is Lucile Ball and Desi Arnaz.  This photo was taken in about 1953 shortly after the birth of their second child Desi Arnaz Jr.  Their daughter shown sitting is Lucie Desiree Arnaz at about age 2.  A wonderful family Christmas that eventually ended in divorce in 1960.

This is the Kennedy family Christmas card with John-John and Caroline......the card that was never sent, because President Kennedy was assassinated just before Christmas on November 22nd in 1963.

One final photo here is taken at Christmastime in Iowa during the peak of the 1930`s depression...they still managed however to have a few lights strung out for the Holidays.

Life is short, and is tough at times, but we all seem to survive.....some however better than others.  Be sure to visit the old folks, the shut-ins, the sick and the lonely ones that have no one to visit them during this Christmas season.  These are the people that have helped to make our world a happier and much more prosperous place than what they lived through.

Some of these photos are courtesy of our friends at Shorpy.com