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| Everyday Celebrations December 2007 |
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| Written by Jean Caster | |
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Thanksgiving is over and the Christmas holiday is in full swing. As I look over the calendar for the next month, I see that there is much to do, and little time to do it in. Generally, the stress of the holiday season would overwhelm me and the potential for actually enjoying the Christmas season would evaporate. But this year, I have a plan to maximize my enJOYment of the Christmas season. This year I pledge to actually focus on the true JOY of the season. This year, I am making a list of things that are really important to me to make the Christmas Season more joyful, i.e. full of joy. Joyful not just to me, but more importantly more joyful for others. Borrowing the theme from one of my very favorite Christmas carols, God Bless Ye Merry Gentlemen, I intend to bring "tidings of comfort and joy", to as many people as I can during this Christmas season.To start off the season, I'm going to look for ways to do more for other people throughout the holiday season. To start, I intend to send Christmas cards to service men and women. There are several organized groups who can help you to do this. I intend to work through the Thanks a Million organization. This group forwards your cards and letters to a service man or women either active duty or retired through their many contacts. You can find more about this organization at www.amillionthanks.org. I also intend to participate in a giving tree activity. Many organizations sponsor giving trees, where names of children and wish lists for the children are placed on a tree. You simply select a child's name and wish list and purchase a gift for them from their wish list. What a better way to bring comfort and joy to a child at Christmas. And don't forget your food pantries. The holidays are a time of giving and sharing. If you watch your grocery sale items closely, you can provide a great quantity of much needed food at very little cost. Watch for sales on items for which you also have a corresponding coupon. This is definitely a great way to spread a little Christmas cheer. And don't forget the many shut-ins, those in hospitals, or nursing homes, or those who don't get out much. Bake a batch of cookies, or have your children draw some holiday pictures, or take time to visit. The holidays are such a lonely time for those who can't get out to enjoy the festivities. My family is already making plans to go Christmas caroling in our neighborhood. My children had never even heard of Christmas caroling, but when I explained that we would go from neighbor’s house to neighbor’s house singing our favorite Christmas carols, they were so eager to get started that I had to remind them that we had to wait until after Thanksgiving. As a child we used to go Christmas caroling every year. But, times have changed and people spend less time than they used to visiting with their neighbors. But this year, we will re-institute the tradition in our family. Of course, my children were also excited about the opportunity to have hot chocolate and cookies after our caroling adventure, but this only adds to the experience. There are so many ways to do for others during the holiday season. Do you have a friend or relative who has everything and you don't know what to buy them for a gift? Why not select a charity that you think they would support and make a donation in their name? What a great way to spread even more comfort and joy! During this holiday season, I intend to focus on the spreading "tidings of comfort and joy" throughout the holiday season. There are so many ways to share joy, and this is such a wonderful time of year to share our many blessings. Blessed Christmas to all! and "Joy to the World!" | |