This year has been so uniquely hard that the holidays seem somewhat tarnished. I am actually missing the insanity of shopping. I’m missing being tired.
It seems that I can’t get the Christmas season right. Then I remembered my sister’s scold of years before.
After a wonderful day of Christmas shopping with the kids, and it was wonderful, we were sitting around the dinner table discussing our purchases. One of my nieces said it was so much fun because she loved giving presents, wherein my sister burst out with a stern, “Christmas is not about giving”
Shocked was I. Shocked. Because if we toss out the commercialism and the reckless spending, isn’t giving rather than receiving the point.
No.
Sister is right
The point of Christmas is to be grateful.
Wait. What.
Just be grateful. A birth. A simple, humble birth. Once so long ago, away in a manger, no crib for a bed, a baby came and changed the world. This birth changed the course of human history.
That baby , if we reach to him, shows us silence, peace and love. The gifts of the magi weren’t necessary for Him to receive or them to give. The gifts of precious material were necessary for the three kings themselves to acknowledge the wonder of what happened.
Giving is good. It’s better than receiving but let’s not forget to be grateful for the gifts we receive as a result of a single birth.
This year, we are alive. We survived.
We survived a virus.
We survived violent social unrest.
We survived … politics.
But this hasn’t been the first of times or the worst of times and it won’t be the last of times like it.
The way to move through hard times and celebrate good times is to look into that humble manger and be grateful.
Being grateful is something we should all practice no matter what religion we are. Wonderful message. Thanks.
Gratitude changes our brain chemistry— it’s a good thing
I’m grateful for my Beth. Everyday.