It’s that wonderful time of year again! Time to trim the tree, pull out the holiday movies, and drink enormous amounts of hot chocolate! Time for Christmas carols, gift wrapping, and candy canes! Time to hang a wreath on the door, put on a Christmas sweater, and bake cookies for Santa! It’s the most wonderful time of the year!
One thing I love about Christmas is all of the tradition.
Growing up, we had lots of fun traditions during the Christmas season. Mom
would read us Christmas stories every single night in December, the house was
filled with Christmas music, and we took our decorations seriously (the place
looked like Santa’s workshop by the time we were done with it). One of my
favorite traditions was our annual “Christmas Tree Sleep-Under”. Every year we
would designate a night to sleep “under” the tree. We watched Christmas movies,
had a special dinner and yummy snacks, and played games together. When we got
tired, we would make up beds for ourselves on the floor by the tree and fall
asleep under the soft glow of the twinkle lights.
Sam and I have pulled traditions from our past and melted
them together. I’ve learned to love his family traditions, he’s learned to love
mine, and together, we’ve created traditions of our own. One of the fun
traditions that we have started together is to pick a day early in December to
bundle up and drive somewhere forested and snow covered to find a Christmas
tree. After searching and finding the perfect pine, we chop it down ourselves,
load it in the truck, and drive it home to decorate. Then, cue the holiday
music as we pull out the decorations and “deck the halls”.
This year we got to bring Emma along to share in the
tradition. Now, usually the search for the tree turns in to quite a hunt. If
you know Sam, you know that he has a difficult time making decisions. He is
always determined to find the best tree on the mountain. It’s funny because we
often search so long that we grow tired and end up just picking one that’s
nearby no matter what it looks like. We’ve had a couple of funny looking trees.
This time, it was so cold and since Emma was with us, we were in more of a
hurry to find our tree. With less picky eyes, we spotted our tree within
fifteen minutes or so. Sam pulled out a hatchet and chopped it down; we posed
for a few pictures and dragged it back to the truck.
The rest of the weekend was spent decorating the house,
watching Christmas music, listening to Christmas music, and sipping peppermint
hot cocoa. The weekend we chop down the tree and decorate is always one of my
favorite weekends of the year.
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| Emma helped decorate the tree |
Christmas is a time for miracles to happen and a time for us
to make miracles happen for others! I remember Decembers in my childhood when
money was tight. We would hear a knock on the door one night and open it to
find a pile of presents in front of us-items picked out thoughtfully for each
of us and anonymously given with love. It was magical for us kids! One year we
even had a visit from Santa! We were certain it was the real Santa. He pulled
up in a fancy sports car (he only uses his sleigh for Christmas Eve) and
brought us each presents. I remember how excited I was to open a brand new Easy
Bake Oven of my very own and how amazed I was to have Santa in my very own
living room! It was a miracle.
Sam and I recently received another Christmas miracle from
kind friends. An unexpected gift that has helped us enormously and that meant
more than could be properly expressed in the simple words we wrote on a thank
you card in a feeble attempt to repay the kindness. How does one repay a
Christmas miracle? The answer was handwritten on a small piece of paper that
was included in the gift we were given:
“Remember, the point
is not to pay back kindness, but to pass it on.”
You see, there was really no way to repay our friends and I
don’t think they expected us to. I think their act was one that was heartfelt
and Christ-like. One that was given with no thought of reciprocity or personal
gain. They were being genuinely charitable and with their kind deed, they
filled our hearts with the true spirit of Christmas-the spirit of giving and
love and Christ.
I was recently sitting in a primary sharing time where a
member of the bishopric spoke to the children about ways that we could serve
others. The children came up with all kinds of ideas “Help mom do the dishes!”,
“Rake up the leaves”, “be nice to my brother’s and sister’s”. I smiled as I
heard the sweet, heartfelt answers that came from their innocent souls. At the
end of the lesson, he encouraged them to write down a gift that they could gift
Christ this year for Christmas. I thought about that afterwards. I thought
about all of the things that Christ has done for me; His example, his unfailing
charity and love, His sacrifices. Impossible to repay. What could I possibly
give Him?
A scripture came to mind:
“A new commandment I give unto you that ye love one another;
as I have loved you,
that ye also love one another.”
-John 13:34
Christ asks us to love others; to give to others as he has
given to us. This is how we can show our love for Him. This is the best gift we
can possibly give Him-to love and serve our brothers and sisters. HIS brothers
and sisters.
So, my goal this Christmas season? Pass it on. I want to
spread some of the love that was so selflessly given to me and my family so
that others might be filled with the true Christmas spirit the way that I have
been. That’s what Christmas is all about.
I wish all of my friends and loved ones a wonderful, merry
Christmas filled with tradition, family, peace, love, and Christ.
Absolutely wonderful.
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