Next week Christmas will have come and gone—whoosh!!! (I know I know… another Christmas post??? Yep.)
What will you remember this year? The lines, the parking, the crowded freeways, the person you forgot, or the person you wished you could forget.
Or will you remember…
Or will you remember the tree, the decorations, the anxious feeling of giving a gift you hope someone will treasure, the room filled with wadded up wrapping paper from just-opened presents, the cider or tea or coffee, the happy people, the ornery people? The choice is yours… really!
Conscious Choices
Christmas is, and always will be, exactly what you want it to be. It is simply a matter of choice. It’s what I often call a Conscious Choice. This season, I encourage you to think about your choices and then choose to see the wonder of it all.
5 Choices
Here are 5 things I will choose to do to see the Christmas magic and truly celebrate this awesome time of year.
- I choose to be Believe in Magic. O0ooh. He said “Magic.” Of course there is magic and shame on you if you try to ruin it. Oh, I know I could have used words like spiritual or God-given or any number of other things, but I like “Magic.” It’s like Disneyland at night. It’s like a big ole fat Santa squeezing down my chimney. It’s like the Magi adoring a normal looking little baby in a stable. It’s like the feeling I get when I’m at a party with love and good cheer. Is it real? Of course it is. Even Santa! It’s Magic!
- I choose to Give of Myself and Expect Nothing in Return. OMG. There is nothing better than the look on someone else’s face when they return the smile I initiated. I will help cook and clean and even decorate. Wherever I am, if something needs to be done, I’ll be the first to volunteer.
- I choose to See Only Beauty and Wonder. It’s so easy to be negative. Enticing even. Instead I’m putting on my other glasses. I think they’re the rose-colored ones. Hey… it’s only for a week.
- I choose to be Awestruck by Children. As much as I hate to admit it, I can be the kind of man that gets annoyed with children: all the noise, hyperactivity, crying, whining and Lord knows what other stuff. But on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day when I see the 8, 9 and 10 year olds, I plan to be thrilled with them. Play games with them, laugh with them, and then sit back and simply take in their wonder.
- I choose to Love and Be Loved. Finally, it is my one or two days to be what I was created to be—a lover. I will love my wife and my son. I will love all my sister’s family on Christmas Eve and all the Chatterton clan on Christmas Day. Plus, with humility, I will joyfully accept all the love that comes my way. I will cry.
