Christmas symbolism

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This is a discussion that has been brought up before but I thought it bears repeating and also putting up for Christmas this year for anyone who wasn't in myLot last year. Many people complain because they feel that Christians, who are very excited about the religious part of Christmas, shouldn't get wrapped up in the sparkle and the commercialism. The evergreen tree is a symbol of eternal life given to us by God through the gift of His Son, Jesus, who died for us and then rose to give us eternal life. To put it in more everyday terms, God created human beings and when we fell from grace by Adam's rejection of God's direction, God knew Jesus would make the supreme sacrifice of becoming a human being to walk among us and pay the ultimate price for sin, no longer needing animals for sacrifice. Also the pitch of an evergreen tree is bitter, like the suffering of Christ. The cross is often referred to as a tree. The evergreen tree is also an extension of that, but it is more a symbol of the life after the resurrection rather than the bareness of the cross/tree. The traditional evergreen tree is also "triangular" which shows us a symbol of the Holy Trinity...one God represented in Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The tinsel and decorations are symbols of the gifts and riches. The gold, frankincense and myrrh were representing God's royalty, our worship of Him, and the myrrh being a spice used in burial, representing that Christ would die for us. The lights on the tree, topped traditionally by a large star are symbols of the stars on Christmas night topped by the special star that God gave. The many colored lights represent the fact that Jesus was given for many different peoples, races, and creeds. The pure white lights represent the purity of Christ. The presents we give each other celebrate love and the generosity of all of us for each other, following the example of God's love for us. The food we feast on is in celebration of God's bounty and kindness to us. There are many many traditions in different cultures as well, and many of them also have their base in the original Christmas story.