And so this is Christmas

Well, there you have it. The momentous day has come and gone... the last few bits of wrapping paper hiding in corners has been cleared away, gifts have found their new homes, some semblance of order has returned, and finally, I breathe again. It was a whirlwind... and after 6 days of company, I can relax before the next set comes tomorrow. (don't get me wrong... it's been wonderful... but a little overwhelming when we're still finding our routine with our new baby...)

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"And so this is Christmas, and what have you done?"

This song is used in a commercial for child sponorship agency and this year we decided as a family that we wanted to take up its challenge seriously. We wanted this Christmas to be different. We wanted our celebration this year to be intential... our giving to be meaningful. And it was.

We pared back our giving so that gifts were from the heart and not about a display of wealth. Not that we are wealthy per se, but we live in a nation that is rich in comparison to many in this world. We wanted to give to others, to clothe freezing children in Russia with warm woolies, to feed children who would go hungry otherwise. We wanted to pay attention to where there was darkness in this world, so that we might shine light and help bring hope. After all, was not a little baby born, and called the Light of the world?

We wanted to celebrate the little things, that need to be big things.

We celebrate our health and our lives.
Not to be trite or quote the adage "Well, at least you have your health..." We're serious. We attended far too many funerals this year, and we have far too many widows counted amongst our family and friends. Our dear friend succumed to his brain tumour. My father-in-law struggled thru his fight with cancer, chemo and a bone marrow transplant and is back on his feet again... Mark struggles daily with MD and its toll on him... with all it robs from him. He experienced a great revelation this year however, when he came to realize what a gift MD can be. He is forced daily to cast himself completely on God for the strength to put one foot in front of the other... and he has found that to be a most beautiful and peaceful place. We are so thankful to have the health we have, and the joy of one more day.

We celebrate our blessedness.
The day before Christmas, we were flipping channels while watching tv and we stopped at a horrifying sight... a room, littered with refuse, the windows were blown out, and one could only imagine what the odour was like that must have filled that place... and then, huddled in the corner, a family. This was their "home". They lived in a war-torn country, and this was all that was left of their dwelling. My daughter was struck by the severity of their poverty. "Why do they live there, Mama?" she asked me, not understanding what she was seeing at first. For my son, he was impacted by his own wealth. Earlier that day, we had reorganized his room to accomodate for the overflow of toys on his shelves... he had never thought himself to be rich before, but in seeing this sad family, he realized just how blessed he was. We have a home that keeps us warm and dry. Our fridge always have food in it. We have an excess of clothing. We have access to free health care and wonderful midwives. We live in peace. Blessings to numerous to count.

We celebrate our family.
What a joy to have a babe craddled in your arms on Christmas morning, while the original story is retold of a babe born so many years ago and placed in a lowly manger. We nestle in with warm blankets and hearts full of thankfulness.

We celebrate the greatest gift of all... the gift in the manger.