A Season of Giving

In just a few days the smell of turkey and pumpkin pie will be wafting through our homes and those that we love will gather around our table. Talking and laughing (and more than one awkward family moment) will make our homes vibrate with festivity.

The holidays are among us. We are ushering in the season of giving.
 

Already as you browse your favorite stores, carols are in the air. Bell ringers have taken their positions at the entrance ways. Garland and poinsettias grace the storefronts and display cases.  Christmas has a way of railroading you at this time of year. I get it. I have four children and our Christmas shopping starts close to January 1^st! I love Christmas - it is by far my favorite holiday. There is nothing like secretly stowing away treasures for my lovely children in anticipation of Christmas Day when they will tear into those delicately wrapped packages, their faces alight with joy. My excitement is often greater than theirs as they uncover that special “something”.

However, I made a promise to myself last year. Somewhere between the cranberry sauce and the stocking stuffers, I had found something. It wasn’t satisfaction. It was stress. My kids are getting older and the gifts that they are asking for are getting more expensive. In addition to that, our family is growing. We added a brother-in-law, a long lost sister, her husband, and a newly found niece into the mix of an already large family.  I found my focus skewed. Instead of concentrating on making memories, I was worrying about my bottom line and making everyone happy with the wrong things. I got everything done (with a huff and a checkmark) but my joy was gone. Somehow I had traded my joy for mere activity. Come Christmas morning and I felt tired – more than tired – physically and emotionally exhausted and I made a vow.

In my season of giving, I would give more wisely.

I would give more wisely of myself. The weeks following thanksgiving can be nothing short of chaos. Everywhere you look, there is a new sale. A new “must have” thing. Another “must attend” party. Before you know it, you are the frazzled person rocking in the corner of another White Elephant gift exchange with a wrapped tchotchke swiped from your shelves because you couldn’t face another trip to the store and endless wait – praying earnestly that no one will notice that you forgot to dust it before cramming it into a wrinkled bag from under your bed (not that I have been there). This is the season of graciously saying no when I am overextended. I can’t show joy when I am overscheduled and overstimulated. My neighbor’s cousin’s grandmother will just have to understand that I won’t be able to make it to the cookie exchange though I am grateful for the invitation.

I would give more wisely to those in need. There is nothing like the reality check that comes with taking a good look around you. I have a wise family member who says, “Honey, no matter how bad you think your situation is, there is always someone that has it worse than you.” In our small town, poverty abounds. Every day I get on social media and see the pleas for help. Someone that can’t afford a tree this year. Pleas for help before electricity is disconnected. Requests for their children, anything, so that they will have a bit under the tree. That is just locally. Our world is in need. There are children going hungry this Christmas. Countries at war and refugees displaced. We aren’t rich and we can’t save the world but we can help one family. Personally.

I would truly give thanks. Thanksgiving can feel like the warm up prior to the real game. Black Friday ads come out with the pecan pie and coffee. Not this year. This year, I want to take a few minutes to savor. So much has happened in 2015. My nine year old was diagnosed as a Type 1 diabetic and almost slipped into a coma. We have suffered through one of the roughest financial crises. Most of my family has moved (some out of country). My marriage almost took a fatal blow.

Our foundations have been shaken and tried but they have not faltered.

 I am thankful.

 We have made changes to our lives that will take time to get accustomed but I still have four smiling healthy faces looking up at me.

 I am thankful.

Eleven years of marriage and we have faced one of our biggest trials, hand in hand, and came back stronger.

I am thankful.

Though my family may be far apart, the love is stronger than ever.

 I am so thankful.

 If you have family and friends – if you have people around you that love and care about you - hold them close and be truly thankful for abundance. When you are truly grateful for the many blessings that you have, it becomes much harder to give your joy away in the midst of chaos. Let that gratitude for the things that really matter, and joy that can’t be shaken, anchor you through the holidays – and through life.

Wishing you a blessed and joyful Holiday season.