From Molly... When we remove "Christ" from this beautiful Holiday, we are left with only "mas" or "more". Without Christ there is never enough, never enough presents, twinkling lights, snow covered lawns, or delicious desserts. At the end of the day, your pocketbook is smaller, but the gap between you and fulfillment is even greater. The meaning of Christmas lives inside of charity for one another. We give gifts at Christmas not only to commemorate the 3 gifts of the wise men but also to remember the greatest gift ever given - from our Heavenly Father to us - Jesus Christ, the one who can right every wrong. Through the wonderful and unimaginable experience of the atonement, He is the perfect bearer of empathy, and so with His eyes, we can see one another more clearly. To know Christ is to love others. To truly celebrate Chrsitmas is to lift the hands that hang down, to free the captive, to love the lonely, and to feed the beggar. After all "...are we not all beggars? Do we not all depend upon the same Being, even God, for all the substance which we have... And behold, even at this time, ye have been calling on his name, and begging for a remission of your sins. And has he suffered that ye have begged in vain? Nay; he has poured out his Spirit upon you, and has caused that your hearts should be filled with joy, and has caused that your mouths should be stopped that ye could not find utterance, so exceedingly great was your joy. And now, if God, who has created you...doth grant unto you whatsoever ye ask that is right, in faith, believing that ye shall receive, O then, how ye ought to impart of the substance... one to another. (Mosiah 4:19-21) "And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled and puzzled 'till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store. What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.” - Dr Seuss How The Grinch Stole Christmas From Sam...
I was talking to a friend yesterday about how magical Christmas is when you're a child, and how once you get a little older, stop believing in Santa, and the element of surprise on Christmas morning dampens so does the magic of Christmas. Then you have your own children and the magic returns as you work to create that for them. This year, for the first time, we are spending Christmas alone as a family. (Yes, I'm 29 and I've never spent a Christmas away from my parents.) It was difficult for me at first, but I wanted to make it a magical season for myself and my kids, and I wanted the magic to go beyond Santa and the gifts. I've never been that enthusiastic about giving a lot of "things" to my kids. They are American. They have everything they could possibly need, and most of what they want so I'm morally opposed to arbitrary gift-giving. We generally do an experience from Aaron and I, and then Santa provides a stocking and the accessories to accompany the gift. For example, one year we got Charlotte swimming lessons so Santa brought her a bathing suit and a hooded towel. Another year we got her gymnastics classes and Santa brought her a gymnastics leotard. Working in Social work taught me the sadness that children feel when they see that the disparities in socio-economic status apply to Santa's gift-giving. I have never wanted my children to contribute to that feeling of misunderstanding and sadness to those whose parents can't afford the "big ticket items". This year it was very important that we focused a lot on the spirit of giving. Every time we've passed a Salvation Army bucket I've given the kids change to put in the bucket and explained how the money will help provide food and clothing for those in need. I took the kids and purchased gifts for children in foster care. We went to Barnes and Noble and I let them pick out books for children at the local children's hospital. And I've made arrangements for us to visit an assisted living home to visit the residents that are alone on Christmas. We've watched a lot of Christmas movies together, and have been reading Christmas books daily. The amount of snuggles, discussions about giving, talks about Jesus' birth and life, and seeing my children recognize the needs of others has been more magical than I could have asked for. Remembering the reason for the season and focusing on the ultimate gift of love and sacrifice is what fills our home and hearts with that magic. I hope that you feel it on this Christmas Morning. Merry Christmas!
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who we areSpread the Good: Three sisters embracing the human experience, ups and downs included, inviting others to join the celebration.
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January 2021
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