Home for the Holidays

"Oh, There's No Place Like Home for the Holidays"

-Robert Allen & Al Stillman's 1954 Christmas Classic

Just as so many things stay the same, then so much changes over the years when it comes to celebrating Christmas with your family.  We all grow older and the circumstances of our lives change from year to year.  Some almost imperceptible others more dramatically and it is hard to appreciate the changes when you're in the present moment.  Then there are the traditions that fade away, those that stand the test of time and the new ones that emerge.  Those traditions remind us of our bonds with those still present and of those that have moved on as well as those that will carry on.  We care about those traditions because they give reason for those we care about to come back to us this one special time of the year.  They are also a testament to the fact that we were loved and that the love we give will be able to go on in those we care about.  We hope that when we are gone the traditions we formed will allow our loved ones to have more special Christmases to come.

You hear the phrase "I wish it could be Christmas all year long".  Well, why shouldn't it should be!  Why should we wait to do all the things the Holidays prompt us to do?  Send a card, give a gift, spend time together and talk of fond memories.  As it stands, we live too fast, think far too much of ourselves and not nearly enough of others all year long.  Then we try to cram all the 'reason for the season' into one compressed point of time and space. 

So what's the answer you ask?  So simple, slow down, take time to reflect, pray and meditate.  Live by a set of principles that make space in your day for just that.  Then why not live by the Christmas principles?  They work that one time of the year.  No where does it say you can't celebrate a little holiday every day.  Right?  Want some help?  OK here are some 'to-do's' for you:

• Pick a time of the day every day to pray, meditate or reflect in a positive way on the past, present and future.
• Send a gift at a date of your choosing to a person that won't expect it.
• Send a 'Thinking of You' card to someone during some point of the year.  (write specifically why you are thinking of them)
• Find a day to invite in family and friends for a good meal and to share stories.  Make it an annual tradition.

Good luck and may our God bless you.