Faith, Family and Friends

This time of year presents many opportunities to reflect. I usually start with my faith in God. My life would be so very empty without it and it has brought me such joy and helped me through some very difficult times as well. Next is my family. I am so very blessed to be married to the most amazing man. He is kind, patient, fun and loving. Our daughter and son arrived to make our family complete and over the years it has been our honor to watch them learn and grow. Now they are married as well and we have two additional children to love. Then come the grandchildren. What can I say? They are three of the most amazing and wonderful and loving children in the world. (and I am NOT exaggerating!) I could not have imagined how much we could love them and how I can have a physical yearning to just be with them. Finally, we have some wonderful friends. Some we have known for a long time, some not so long, some we see frequently and some not so much. Yet, they are a critical piece in our lives and bring such joy and happiness to us. Yes, we face challenges in our lives, sometimes daily. However we are so very blessed to have our faith, family and friends to support us. I give thanks to God each day for all of them.

Almost there...

Well, Christmas is just around the corner. 6 days away to be exact. (oops, I just remembered that I neglected to change the 'days to' count on my countdown calendar at home!) I have tried very hard this year to not miss Christmas. I have a tendency to get bogged down in the details, gifts, cards, etc., and not take time to reflect and remember that the true reason for the season is the birth of Jesus. I have taken time to listen to Christmas music, read various Christmas stories to our grandchildren and our 3 year old Sunday School class and finally taken time to thank God for the best gift ever! This is not to say that I have not had a few melt downs, maybe a temper tantrum and possibly wanted to 'run screaming from the building' occasionally, but I believe that I am better than I have been in years past and will continue to work to the ultimate goal of a truly stress free Christmas - one year in the future I am certain!

The true meaning...

I had to run out at lunch today to pick up an item for a craft that we will do with the 3 year olds that we teach in Sunday School. The traffic on the roads was nerve wracking and the stores were packed to the rafters. People were pushing and shoving and their baskets were overflowing with so many items that I observed more than one person having difficulty navigating the aisles. I could not help but wonder how many people were remembering the true reason that we should be celebrating - the birth of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus. It made me sad to see the obvious stress on people's faces. When I returned to my car, I took a minute to pray and to give thanks to God, once again, for sending His Son to Save all of us. I also prayed that more people would take the time to open their hearts and minds and reflect the true meaning of the season.