I am an emotional wreck during Hallmark commercials, so you can just imagine the pile of mush that I turn into during the holidays. I try to stay upbeat and positive through the holidays, but sometimes it just is not option.
Christmas reminds me of those that are no longer with us. My dad, my mother, my grandparents, friends that have been taken away from this Earth too soon, children that should never have had to deal with such adult illnesses to begin with. While my children were opening their gifts this morning, these are the people that I was thinking about. How I bet Elric would have loved a little Lego set like Tre got, how Dad would have thought that John’s yard long box of cookies would have been awesome.
I loved the surprised looks on the faces of my offspring this morning. They were not expecting the additional gifts that were under the tree. They were expecting simply the single gift that each of them had requested. Tre seems to believe that this is the way to do things because he has already come to me and put in his “one birthday gift request” today and his birthday is not until March!
We have been blessed this year. My sister married one of the most wonderful men in the world, and together they were able to keep my father’s home and the property that we all grew up on in the family. Now I know that my nieces and nephew will get to enjoy the magic and wonderment of growing up in the valley like we did. They may not appreciate it until they are grown and on their own, moved away from the valley and with lives of their own. They will, I know, look back on their time there though with great fondness and wonderful memories.
So while today has been filled with smiles and some tears, I would not change a thing. I have my family, I have my health, I have neighbors whom I love dearly, and I am able to great each morning with a smile (eventually). That is the best gift I could ever ask for.
Our family has struggled, for more years than I care to remember, but through every trial and tribulation, God and our faith in Him, have seen us through all of them. Watching “Miracle on 34th Street” this morning made me remember that. “In God We Trust” is what this great nation of ours was founded upon. In God We Trust, as a family, as individuals, as a nation.
Is that not the greatest gift that any of us could receive?
