Note: This was written last year on December 26 after I read "The 13th Day of Christmas" by Jason F. Wright, but has finally been publicly published for your enjoyment. Hopefully this will clear any confusion over the dates (when I say it's the 26th of December when it most obviously is not) and you won't think I'm a very confused person who needs to look at a calendar.
Dear [insert name here],
Christmas is my absolute favorite holiday. Why? The joy, the laughter, the peace,
the warmth and the love. I love the bright holiday lights, steaming mugs of hot chocolate, the piney
smell of Christmas trees and those adorable couples holding each others'
mittened hands. I love the sparkling snow on the ground, the crisp
winter bite in the air and the crunching of fashionable boots on the
ice. I love the cheerful off-key singing of carolers, the glow of warm
fires through windows and the endless ringing of "Merry Christmas!" from
stranger to stranger. And you know what? I love the Santas and the
reindeer and Frosty the Snowman and the department store sales. I love
giving presents. I love getting presents. I love Christmas parties. I
even love the hustle and bustle.
One
day, my friend was complaining that he hated Christmas. He called it
a "greedy" holiday. One where people only thought of getting, getting,
getting. A holiday full of stress. A holiday where no one focused on
Christ anymore and only focused on themselves. I had to think about it
for awhile. I kind of got depressed because if you look through it at
that angle, then he's correct. Christmas can be a month full of
stress. Of empty pockets. Of debt and financial trouble. Of snotty, selfish
children who aren't even grateful for the iPod, iPad and latest version
of the iPhone they're getting. Of honking horns as drivers flip each
other off in the congested holiday traffic runs. Of slushy, dirty snow
piled up on the sides of the roads. Of annoying ward Christmas parties.
Of carols played over and over and over and over on the radios until
you want to scream. Through that lens, Christmas can be a terrible holiday.
And then it hit me. By thinking of Christmas that way,
I'm ruining it for myself. My friend is ruining it for himself, but I don't
have to be sucked into the pit of despair as well. It all depends on how you look at it. I know, what a super cliche way to put it, but it's so very, very true. You can
decide to see the awful and the terrible and the bad about the holiday
and ruin it for yourself.
In fact, it's kind of ironic actually. In
hating Christmas, you're actually fulfilling everything you hate
about it! The true focus of Christmas is Christ and love.
Let me repeat that word again: love. In hating the holiday, you are,
regrettably, not choosing love. Fortunately, there's
still a chance. You can choose to see the good. You can choose to see
the things that are lovely and beautiful about it. Yes, of course there
are people who get caught up in the commercial part of Christmas. But
you know what? Everyone does to some extent. And is that wrong? No, I
don't believe it is. Obviously don't go to the extreme, but I don't
think going to the extreme in loathing everything else is
necessarily good either. I think sometimes we get too caught up in
hating the commercial part of it that we leave no room for Christ. On the outside it
looks like we're focusing on Him, but in reality, we're too worried about keeping the
other things out that there's no room for Him in our hearts. Hating is not going to
bring Christ back into Christmas. Having a "holier-than-thou" attitude won't either. I'm going to take a stab in the
dark, but I would even venture to say that He wants us to be happy
during Christmas. *gasp* He wants us to give gifts and get gifts or keep Christmas however we like. Technically, we shouldn't need a holiday to remind us of Christ anyway. We should already be doing that every second of our mortality. We should be celebrating His life every single day, all year round. Otherwise, what's the point of remembering Him for twenty-five days if we forget about Him the rest of the year? So, for goodness sake, go have fun all the way up to the twenty-fifth. Don't be a self-righteous martyr. Go to the parties. Go shopping. Wrap your gifts. Get excited
for Santa to come. Or be Santa and be excited to see the eyes of your
children light up as they walk into the living room and see their
goodies. Make those holiday sugar cookies and get frosting all over the
counter. Turn up the radio full blast and jam to Deck the Halls or
Sleigh Ride. It's a fun time that only comes once a year. So you might as well take advantage of the festivities, right?
Today
is the twenty-sixth. I've had my holiday fun. I've opened my gifts, given
gifts and put them away. Now is the time where I give the most
meaningful gift: a gift of my Savior, my Redeemer.
I believe in Jesus Christ with all my heart and soul. He
lives. His birth brought hope unto mankind. A God became mortal and
suffered every single pain, hurt and sorrow for each of us so that we
might return to live again with Heavenly Father. He also suffered for
us so that we might be comforted and feel at peace during times of despair. All He asks in return is for us to try
our best to be like Him. His life is our model.
Today, I declare that I am recommitting to be more like
Him. I just spent twenty-five days this December celebrating His birth,
but now, it's time to celebrate His life. It's time to celebrate His
example. It's time to live His example. I know I'm not perfect. I
make mistakes. Oh so many mistakes. I harbor regrets. But I'm trying. I'm trying so hard. It doesn't always work out. Sometimes I slip.
Sometimes I fall. Sometimes I flat-out fall on my face and slide
freakin' backwards down the pathway of life. But He is always there for
me. He is always there to extend a hand to help me back up. He'll
even push me back up the mountain. Or carry me. And I know with all my
heart that He'll do the same for you.
I know what I need to do. I need to fully repent and
embrace His atonement in my life. I need to practice this every single
day. I need to act on the promptings of the Spirit more. I need to
stop lying to myself. I need to treat people as people, just like Jesus
would treat them. I need to love them as He loves them. I need to be
more willing to help out. I need to not complain. I need to study my
scriptures better. I need to serve others more. I need to stop hating and holding grudges. I need to let go of my perfectionism.
There are so many things I need to do. But I'm taking
them a slow step at a time. It's not required that I become perfect. I
just need to do my best. My absolute best. And never ever give up.
I hope I've presented to you another way to look at
Christmas. Christmas is a magical time of year, but the day after is the
time where we decide if we'll keep the magic with us or let it be boxed
up with our Christmas decorations until next year.
xoxo,
Kimberly
