Tis the Season...

..to be jolly.

I have always loved the holiday season. Christmas time has always been my favorite. I love getting out all the decorations, and feeling the changes in everyone's attitudes as the season gets into full swing. Life always seems so much happier around this time of year. I love it!!

Last year, though, was very different from any other Christmas I've ever experienced. I felt terrible. It was the first time ever that I wasn't going to be spending Christmas anywhere near my parents. I was scheduled to work Christmas Eve, and didn't have any way to make it back to Washington in time to be with them. So last year I was a complete GRINCH!! I quite literally did not feel any Christmas cheer leading into the holiday. Then, surprisingly, as life has a way of being, Christmas Eve came and as I was with relatives reading the Christmas story and watching a recording of The Forgotten Carols I remembered what the real meaning is behind Christmas.

The real meaning of Christmas is not to see who can spend the most money, or give the best gifts. Christmas is about remembering our older Brother, Jesus Christ. Christmas is about recognizing the life he lead, which allows me to lead the life I choose. It is because of Christ that I know how important family is, and because He lives, I live. As soon as I realized this, Christmas day became a bit brighter. I felt a small burden lifted, and I began to enjoy myself much more than I had ever expected to.

This Christmas season I've been blessed with the opportunity to take some time off work around the holidays and I'll be going home to spend it with my family. I cannot begin to tell you how excited I am that I will be with my family, in the place I grew up calling home. I will cherish the time I get to spend with all my loved ones, even more so because I know how painful it is to be away from them during my favorite of all holidays. This year I've already felt the Christmas Spirit much more than I ever have. I've been feeling the Christmas Spirit for weeks already...and Christmas is still weeks away. Odd, yes; but I am loving the new insights I've gained into myself and those around me, that allow me to enjoy so much more in life. None of which would have been possible if not for Christ, and last Christmas.