the day after
The presents have all been opened, the stockings hang limp on the hearth. We've already made one trip to Walmart and Target to make returns and exchanges. Christmas day is over and we are left with a pile of plastic packaging, cardboard boxes and shreds of wrapping paper.
The returns went surprisingly well. Not a peep was heard from the kids as we drove all over town, stopping at several places. The kids sat quietly in the backseats with their new toys. Nathanael's new Nintendo DS beeped and clicked in the far back and Lydie made up stories with her new Barbie. Abigail, the newest in the pack, was content with her lovey.
In the wake of Christmas, I feel both the relief and tiredness of a season of preparing gifts, attending concerts and decorating to celebrate the birth of Christ. I reflect on our gift giving, namely to our kids. We had hoped to limit the gifts this year to four or five, yet the bandits somehow made out with gifts numbering into the teens. How do we teach them to appreciate what they have been given, whether it is a few gifts or many? How do we teach them the joy of giving to others, even sacrificially? Children live what they learn, so they say. Are they living a life of gratitude, contentment, and unselfish giving?
I have ideas for next year. Starting earlier with buying gifts, letting extended family take care of most of the gifts on our kid's lists, buying one special gift. Then giving them experiences that will shape their hearts-- visiting a local nursing home and singing prepared songs, making pictures for those we know- elderly or alone during the holidays. Making gifts instead of buying them.
Something else that I felt as I moved through this season was that celebrating Christ- is not a once a year thing- it is a daily thing. Treating each day as Christmas, by seeking small and significant ways to recognize how Christ's birth, life and death has made an impact on every day of my year. Celebrating Christ in our family times, not just at Christmas.
The returns went surprisingly well. Not a peep was heard from the kids as we drove all over town, stopping at several places. The kids sat quietly in the backseats with their new toys. Nathanael's new Nintendo DS beeped and clicked in the far back and Lydie made up stories with her new Barbie. Abigail, the newest in the pack, was content with her lovey.
In the wake of Christmas, I feel both the relief and tiredness of a season of preparing gifts, attending concerts and decorating to celebrate the birth of Christ. I reflect on our gift giving, namely to our kids. We had hoped to limit the gifts this year to four or five, yet the bandits somehow made out with gifts numbering into the teens. How do we teach them to appreciate what they have been given, whether it is a few gifts or many? How do we teach them the joy of giving to others, even sacrificially? Children live what they learn, so they say. Are they living a life of gratitude, contentment, and unselfish giving?
I have ideas for next year. Starting earlier with buying gifts, letting extended family take care of most of the gifts on our kid's lists, buying one special gift. Then giving them experiences that will shape their hearts-- visiting a local nursing home and singing prepared songs, making pictures for those we know- elderly or alone during the holidays. Making gifts instead of buying them.
Something else that I felt as I moved through this season was that celebrating Christ- is not a once a year thing- it is a daily thing. Treating each day as Christmas, by seeking small and significant ways to recognize how Christ's birth, life and death has made an impact on every day of my year. Celebrating Christ in our family times, not just at Christmas.
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