I wanted to share something that I love about christmas, but before I do I need to set the scene of where my mind was before all the lights went up and all the christmas trees where pull out from their 12 month hibernation.

Right after Thanksgiving I started to feel sour on the thought of Christmas being less than 30 days away. I couldn’t put my finger on why I was feeling this way. If it would have been up to me, I would have been ok with skipping Christmas all together. I wasn’t sour on the idea of celebration the birth of Jesus, it was the total opposite of this. I was 100% ready to go the school and watch the kid’s Christmas plays and be blown away by the awesome job they do. I was in a crisis, because I didn’t want to be the scrooge of Christmas. Imagine me going around saying “Bah Humbug.” I would have a mutiny at my house and I would probably spend the next 30 days sleeping outside in the dog house.

Then it hit me!

What triggered this crisis in me was all the hype surrounded around shopping and spending money. It seemed that everywhere I turned I was bombarded with the idea that I needed to buy stuff. Slowly over the years my Christmas spirit has be taking a hit from witnessing the effect of people getting so caught up in the spirit of buying and spending and totally missing the hurting and lost that are in front of us every day. Maybe why I was hit so hard with this, this year was because I overheard someone talking on the phone telling the other person that they didn’t know how they were going to do Christmas this year because they didn’t have any money. Or maybe it had to do with knowing that there are people around me every day just trying to make it through a normal month without the pressure of trying to find a way to scrape up a little extra in December so the tree has something underneath it on Christmas day. Wow how did we get here? This time of the year was never meant to become stress to our body and mind. Nor was it meant to become a strain on our wallets.

Now let me tell you that something that I love about Christmas. After I’ve painted this scene of doom and gloom.All it took for me to clear my head of all the muck, was to see my family’s emblems of love to me. It happened the day my wife said today I would like to bring up our Christmas stuff and start decorating the house. I have to admit that I wasn’t very enthusiastic with the request but I obeyed because I know it would mean alot to my wife and the kids.

We started the ritual of bringing out the decorations. I was a little impressed with how fast we were able to decorate the inside of the house. We knocked it out in less than half a day, everything except for the tree. By this time I was done and didn’t want to help with anymore decorating, so I pulled out my computer and started to work on stuff for work. It didn’t take long before my wife forced me to get involved with the activities so I put away the laptop and started to help fluff the tree.

We spent A few more hours decorating the tree and we were done! Wow I was tired, decorating is hard work!

As I started to unwind and relax this was when my eyes caught sight of all the precious gifts that I had been given and collected over the past 21 years. I was overwhelmed with the sight of the gifts I had decorating my house. A smile grow on my face from ear to ear as I looked around my house and I saw all of the craft projects my kids made over the years.  I was overcome with an avalanche of emotions of love and honor.

So what I love about Christmas now is unboxing the gifts that my kids have given me over the years, these images of their hands making a Christmas tree out of craft paper and paint has become a symbol of how much they love me. In that moment my spirit was rejuvenated and the muck and sourness that I had tasted for the past month was taken away.

Life is hard and comes with many challenges but instead worrying about all the things that we ca not do or don’t have. Lets try to spend less time in the store and more time giving the emblems of love to someone in need this Christmas. Remember very litttle money is needed to give a card, send a letter or make a call. But the power that act has will always outweigh the power of a gift that can be purchased.

This Christmas let the power of our love shine!

Please share an experience of how love was given to you or someone this Christmas.

Remember To Keep Rolling On This Holiday Season!
Merry Christmas to all!