It seems that every post I write begins with…..It’s been a while…..lol, life gets busy and my blogging falls behind. I have some time now and I can finally find a moment to write. I am finished my first term of college and am now officially on Christmas Vacation. Right now I am sitting in my cozy house and it is a snow storm outside. This morning was supposed to be the Kids Christmas Play that we have been working on for several months but due to the weather conditions church was cancelled. Church hasn’t been cancelled for 10 years!
The last few months have brought lots of craziness. I had my wisdom teeth out, which was a huge ordeal, talk about pain! Just recently my Dad slipped and fell on some black ice and smashed his elbow. He had to have surgery, it was so bad that they had to completely replace the elbow. So my poor Dad is recovering and my wonderful mother is trying to take care of him….just in time for the holidays.
I am back working at Reitman’s for the holidays, not my first pick, but I get a great discount and I can use the money. Business at the Seaway mall seems to have picked up a bit with the arrival of all the new stores. Unfortunately I seem to have noticed a common spirit among many shoppers this Christmas season: the spirit of selfishness. Perhaps it is due to phrases such as Happy Holidays, Seasons Greetings and Merry X-Mas. Do people even know what they are celebrating, why they are celebrating? I was informed at work the other day that the proper phrase to use to customers is Seasons Greetings or Happy Holidays, sorry but no can do……Thank you for shopping at Reitman’s and MERRY CHRISTMAS to you. What do people think Christmas is anyways…..let’s break it down. CHRISTmas…..oh wow, it’s not obvious at all. Could Christ really be the reason for the season? I suppose that with the enforcement of “there’s no such thing as absolute truth” or “make sure you are politically correct” Christmas is just a time to give and get gifts, nothing more. It makes me sad. I was at the Great Canadian Superstore the other day and there were two women were having an argument in the parking lot, probably over a parking spot……2 grown women, it’s ridiculous really. Where’s the love, where’s the joy? It makes me sad because people miss the point. Christmas is a celebration of Jesus. Christmas is a celebration of the freedom that can be found in Christ. Christmas is a celebration of the life that we can have. It makes me sad because when you take Jesus out of Christmas there is really nothing to celebrate. Perhaps that is part of the reason I see the emptiness in people’s eyes this season; they have nothing to celebrate and deep down it’s what they really need.
The 252 Basics Sunday school program that I wrote about earlier has been going awesome. This month we have been talking about peace. A few of the girls and I decorated the room, we went all out for Christmas. For the past 2 months the kids have been collecting items for “Christmas Cheer”, which is a project to collect items (toys, scarfs, hats, mitts, food, etc) for needy families in our community. It has been amazing to see the kids get involved. That gives me joy. For the Christmas Eve service at my church this year one of my good friends from school is coming to spend Christmas Eve with my family and I. That gives me joy. Watching my little brother buy someone special a gift he saved for and probably can’t afford just because he is driven by love…..that gives me joy. I am surrounded by these little things that fill me with joy. I wish that more people would open their hearts to some of the joy that surrounds their lives. I was at the grocery store the other day getting some milk and there was an old man standing at the door way. Beside the friendly looking gentlemen was one of those Salvation Army containers where you can drop your change. Usually I would walk past anyone like that, especially if they were ringing a bell but on this particular day the man tugged my heart and I decided to find some change for his basket. As I dropped it in the basket the man looked at me and said “God Bless You”, as I walked to my car all I could think was “He already has”. That man and that simple phrase blessed me and I left with a bit more joy. It’s the spirit of Christmas and I absolutely refuse to be swallowed up by anything else.
Won’t you do the same?
Merry CHRISTmas,
The Kindred Spirit
