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The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

I love Christmas.

 Did you know?  Have I ever made that clear?!  If somehow I hadn't relayed that you, let me clear it up now.  I.LOVE.CHRISTMAS.

 I love the lights, the colors, the decorations, the trees, the ornaments, the bows, the presents, the feel.  Now, I know reading that it seems like I forgot the most important reason of all - the birth of our Savior.  No worries there.  My joy this time of year is directly related to the Reason for the season.

 All that said, I really do believe this IS the most wonderful time of the year. 

 It's also wonderfully BUSY time of year!  So much so that the most wonderful time of the year can quickly turn into the most frustrating time of year.  I hear people complain about Salvation Army bells ringing, overly informative holiday greetings in the form of family newsletters, people dropping by to call when your house isn't cleaned up from Thanksgiving yet, parties for hosting, marshmallows that have been toasted to charred remains, carolers traipsing through your snow, scary stories of family members on their way to town...get the picture?  :) 

 Something dawned on me today.  And that was, WHY is this the most wonderful time of year?  I mean, with God being ever-present in our lives, why is THIS time of year the only time we're focused on being of good cheer?  Seems off-base to me.

 Last weekend I baked a ton of Christmas themed cookies then invited ladies over to decorate them with me.  We had such a fun time!  Frosting and sprinkles were everywhere!  Why don't I do that other times of the year, too?  Why does it just have to be for Christmas?

 This weekend my sister, mom and I are heading to Aurora for our annual Christmas shopping trip.  We'll shop for two days and stay the night at a hotel.  The idea is to spend time together and get our shopping done.  Why don't we do that during the year?  

 With the baked and decorated cookies, I made some containers and set off on a mission to meet some neighbors I haven't met since I moved to this house in June.  I was welcomed into the home of a sweet, elderly couple and invited back again.  The wife gave me a huge hug!  Another family's little boy gave me a hug and the mom was thrilled we took the time to bring them cookies.  Why didn't I do that sooner?  Why did I wait until Christmas?

 This year I sent Christmas cards for the first time in a long time.  Why?  To send out my new address.  Why didn't I just connect with a few of those people sooner?  (Since honesty is important, I also sent those because I was so excited to share my Christmasy house!)

 This time of year charitable giving goes up.  People are focused on the homeless, needy children and residents in assisted living homes.  Why just THIS time of year?  Why weren't those needs on the radar of people before now?

 This time of year is magical and beautiful.  I would never want to take away from the beauty of the Christmas season.  But, I stopped today to realize that ALL year long should be beautiful.  We're on a journey and it's a journey that is best lived together with each other, building each other up, loving each other, showering each other with encouragement and sometimes a just because gift.  Take the magic of the next few weeks, tuck it into your heart and share it a little bit at a time all year long.  What joy would spread if we did that!

 Maybe it's wishful thinking, but this time of year might just become the MOST wonderful time of year if we weren't rushing around so much.  Maybe if we weren't cramming a year's worth of joy into 4 weeks, we'd slow down, bask in the magic of Christmas once again and stop wishing for it to end.

 Just my two cents anyway...


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