Christmas is all about gifts, but not just in a superficial way. No, as the Christmas episode of Akage no An reminds us, the joy of giving and receiving gifts comes from a humble heart. Personally, I would rank this as one of the most wholesome Christmas episodes of all time. After all, it’s hard to think of a happier child on Christmas day than Anne. But behind the idealistic image of a warm adoptive family, we see a compelling call for both gratitude and loving generosity for those in need.

Let’s take a look at how Anne responded to her gifts, and what it can teach us!

If you’re a Western anime fan, chances are you’ve never heard about the 1979 anime adaptation of Anne of Green Gables. Even for Japanese anime fans, the series is far from mainstream. After Kaguya from Kaguya-sama: Love is War tells her friends she likes Akage no Anne, she is told: “Only a diehard anime fan would bring up something that old! You’re the biggest otaku here!”

Neither Kaguya nor I can deny the accusation, but despite being a bit dated, Akage no Anne is a very high-quality anime. This is partly because it was directed by Isao Takahata, co-founder of Studio Ghibli. He was probably the perfect director for the job, but we wouldn’t have Anne without her original creator. The story is based on the classic children’s novel Anne of Green Gables written by L. M. Montgomery, which tells the story of Anne Shirley, an orphan who was sent by mistake to two middle-aged siblings, Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert. As one of the best-selling books of all time, it has many TV and movie adaptations, but Takahata’s anime adaptation has been considered to be one of the most faithful. So much so, that you could add English subtitles to the anime by copying and pasting dialogue from the book.

Sticking close to the content of the book was a wise decision by Takahata, because Anne’s dialogue alone is enough to make the anime enjoyable. With her rich imagination and idealistic perspective, she is a joy to listen to as she talks about the things she has been thinking or daydreaming about. But what some adaptations have neglected, is that there is another side to Anne as well. Growing up as an orphan, she was never taken care of by anyone who really loved her or cared about her. This means she knows all too well what cruelty and loneliness are like. Because of this, she doesn’t take it for granted that Marilla and Matthew genuinely try to raise her and provide for her the best way they can. She is grateful to both of them and doesn’t mind obeying Marilla, even though her ways can be old-fashioned sometimes.

Gratitude comes so naturally to Anne because she has made it a consistent practice in her life to be thankful, regardless of her situation. This attitude helps her cope in the bad times, but not just that; it also prepares her for great joy when her heart’s desire is granted. We can be happy for Anne that she is blessed with a humble disposition, but this blessing is available to all of us. In fact, in Phil. 4:6-7 we read the following promise: “In everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” 

Every night, in line with this passage, Anne’s prayers are filled with thanksgiving and humble requests. The first thing she keeps thanking God for is for creating nature, often mentioning her so-called Lake of the Shining Waters and the cherry tree outside her window, which she’s named Snow Queen. And in this episode, Snow Queen is the first one to receive a cheerful “Merry Christmas!” from Anne. Only a minute after waking up, she is already in high spirits, because one look out of her bedroom window proves that her wish for a white Christmas has come true. It is with this cheerful mood that she makes her way downstairs. Completely unbeknownst to her, Matthew is fidgeting around in the living room, wondering whether Anne will like the dress he bought for her. He spent a lot of time and effort obtaining this gift. But he remains unsure whether she will like it because she never asked him for anything. He just thought it would help her fit in with her friends to have a dress with puffed sleeves, which are in fashion.

Anne enters the room, talking about how great it is to have a white Christmas. However, she quickly notices that Matthew is holding a mysterious parcel in his hands. Meanwhile, Marilla is acting like she’s occupied with preparing breakfast, but secretly she is quite interested in how Anne will react to the present. As Matthew unpacks the present, Anne looks at it in disbelief: “Is this… for me?” When Matthew confirms that it’s really for her, she is hit by a wave of emotions. Overwhelmed by this unexpected gift, her eyes start filling with tears. Matthew misinterprets this and thinks she’s upset because she didn’t like the gift.

But we know otherwise, thanks to Takahata’s purposeful sound direction. During this moment, the same euphoric music plays that we heard before in the most important scenes early on in the anime, such as when Marilla decided not to send Anne back to the orphanage immediately, and when she told her she was allowed to stay at Green Gables. With this, Takahata creates a strong parallel between the earlier scene and this Christmas scene. When Anne heard Marilla utter the words: “We’ve decided to keep you,” she immediately became overwhelmed with positive and hopeful thoughts, bringing tears to her eyes then as well. At that time, Marilla wondered why she was tearing up, just as Matthew is wondering right now.

The reason Anne is able to experience this moment of blissful disbelief is that despite her high hopes, she focuses on being grateful for the plain dresses Marilla made for her, and accepts that her dream of wearing a dress with puffed sleeves must remain a dream. So when she sees the dress Matthew has in his hands, it makes sense that she has to take a moment to realize this gift is for her. Her humility in accepting this gift is the reason she can be so intensely happy about receiving it. Anne’s happiness in this situation can help us understand why Jesus repeatedly calls for us to humble ourselves. Aside from the purely practical benefits of doing so, we will experience great joy when we are given more than we thought we deserved.

While all this has already surpassed Anne’s expectations, it’s about to get even better. Along with the dress, Mrs Lynde gives her a matching ribbon. Then a final gift from Aunt Josephine tops it all off: a pair of pretty shoes that suit the rest of her outfit perfectly, and which she can wear during the Christmas play. Anne says this is too much for her, and that she must be dreaming. To this, her best friend Diana says wisely: “I call it providential.”

Providential is exactly the right word, and we will come back to it soon. But first, let’s see how the rest of the day unfolds! In a scene that Takahata added to the story, we see Anne trying out her new outfit, eager to ask what Matthew and Marilla think of it. When Anne enters the room wearing her new dress with the accompanying ribbon and shoes, both of them are stunned. They have never before seen her in an elegant outfit like this, which causes them to see her in a new light. It has become crystal clear to them that this orphan girl has become the most precious person in their lives. And now there is nothing they won’t do for her. They’ll even go to watch her Christmas performance, which is quite radical for Matthew and Marilla, not having been to a concert in twenty years.

The concert goes smoothly, with Anne and her classmates giving delightful performances. After they all return home, Marilla admits to Matthew that she’s proud of Anne, although she states that she won’t tell her, always overly cautious not to feed her pride. But Matthew informs her that it’s too late for that because he already told her he’s proud of her before she went upstairs. Marilla sighs and admits that Anne has grown into a big girl with a bright mind. This leads to them planning for her future. After Avonlea school, they think she should go to Queen’s Academy, where she can continue her education. This is where the book chapter ends, but Takahata adds a poignant moment. It will take a couple of years before Anne can go to Queen’s Academy, but Marilla is already dreading the thought of it. Anne has become very dear to her, which becomes evident as she checks up on her at night, tenderly tucking her in.

With this extra scene, Takahata foreshadows an important point that Matthew makes later on in the story. While it’s true that Anne has received many blessings thanks to Marilla and him, it’s just as true that she has been a blessing to them. She came to Green Gables through a mistake, but Matthew thinks this wasn’t simply a mistake. He believes that God felt that they needed her and that He sent her to them for that reason. And here it is that we have that word again: Providence. Anne and the Cuthbert siblings becoming a family was part of God’s divine plan all along. Matthew fulfills the role of being a gentle adoptive father for Anne, but he, in turn, has a heavenly Father who looks over both himself and Anne. The fact that this family is able to live a happy life together at Green Gables is ultimately a gift from God. This is what scripture tells us to be aware of: “Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” (James 1:16-17)

From the beginning of the story, Anne has been fortunate enough to be born with a humble, charitable, and grateful nature. She never once mistook Marilla’s sternness for coldness but instead saw that she always lovingly sought the best for her, even if she could benefit from being a bit more flexible in her attitude. The Cuthberts, for their part, nobly accepted the responsibility of providing a warm home for her, even if they preferred to have a boy who could help Matthew on the farm. It was over time that they came to realize how much good it did them to have Anne. Her presence in the house made them better and happier people. 

There’s a lot we can learn from Anne. Her practice of gratitude helps her when she’s going through tough times, and sets her up for joy in good times. But her humble attitude has had a big impact on her relationships as well, and not just with Marilla. Anne didn’t have the best first impressions of Mrs Rachel Lynde or Aunt Josephine, and no wonder! Mrs Rachel appears to be a typical busybody, and Aunt Josephine perfectly fits the role of a cranky old wealthy aunt. These observations are correct, but Anne is charitable enough to see beyond them. Despite her faults, Mrs Rachel has a kind heart. And over time, Aunt Josephine has become like an affectionate grandmother to Anne, eagerly looking forward to a visit from her. Because of Anne’s considerate and slow judgment, these difficult individuals became family to her. This is what made the joy of this episode possible because without them she couldn’t have received any of the gifts. Not even the dress, because Mrs Rachel picked out the material, and made it for her! (Those familiar with Anne’s story will remember that she was not always so charitable though. Her core arc is in learning to be a little more kind and forgiving to a certain young man, Gilbert Blythe!) 

There’s a lot we can learn from Matthew too. When Marilla asked him what good adopting Anne would do to them, Matthew pulled an uno reverse and said: “We might be some good to her.” This shift in mindset is what Jesus wants for us, as we read in Acts 20:35: “In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” What we read here is that if we focus on what we can do for others, we might find that taking on this responsibility does just as much good for ourselves as it does for them, if not more. For Matthew and Marilla, this became a clear reality.

So let us celebrate Christmas with a humble attitude, seeing what we can do for our loved ones. When we honor others in this way, we see more clearly what we can be grateful for as well. After all, the perfect gift from our heavenly Father might not be in the shape we expect it to be. But while the circumstances in our lives change and bring many different challenges, we can be sure that our God never changes. His goodwill for us endures forever. This sentiment is echoed by Anne’s words: “God’s in his heaven, all’s right with the world.”

---

A big thank you to Guest Writer Michel, for gifting us with this beautiful post!

Akage no An is available for purchase on Blu-Ray/DVD through Amazon, and one of the producers of the boxset, Studio100, has made the episodes available on YouTube, including the Christmas Episode!