Merry Christmas Eve!! There’s something about the decoration, smell and vibe of Christmas that elicits a sense of hope and prosperity for many, but I also realize the holidays can bring about difficult emotions and feelings from loss or hurt people have experienced in the past. I hope your Christmas holiday this year is one that can be spent reflecting on the good in your life and good things to come. This year, we won’t be able to spend our Christmas with the rest of our family as we’ve done in years past, so we are starting our own little traditions with the three of us. It will be quiet around home all in all, though with a one year old, it can only get so quiet :)
One thing that I would like to start as a tradition is explaining the background of our ornaments to my son. Our tree is a hodgepodge of various items from all over the world. Many of our ornaments have been passed down through each of our families and now find a home among the branches of our tree each December. Others document the various milestones we’ve had in our lives and bring back happy memories as we unpack them and discover them as new every year.
Something that I am very excited about is seeing the joy on my little boy’s face as he gets older and discovers the true meaning about Christmas. I want to be sure and teach him the importance that it’s not about what we have, what we get or how many boxes we get to open. It’s about giving. It’s about hope. And most of all, it’s about love and our Savior. There are so many in the world who are less fortunate than us and I want him to be sure and truly understand that even if we only have one dollar in our pocket, that it is a blessing and that we should be grateful for what we have. To compare our circumstance to others and wish for more all of the time isn’t what our purpose is, but it is to use what we have to the best of our abilities and give others kindness and generosity. It doesn’t mean that we can’t strive to do our best or to set and attain goals, but to always live in a state of want isn’t what life and living is all about.
So may you be joyous in the moment and I wish you and those you love to have a very blessed Christmas and holiday season!
