We left New Jersey on Monday at 3am. A foot and a half of snow was on the ground. Outside temperature was 19 degrees. The fear of black ice kept us from driving too fast or using the cruise control.
My wife drove most of the way so that I could adjust positions and even rest my foot on the dashboard as needed. It wasn’t too comfortable but it wasn’t too bad either. Of course, I still had thoughts of getting into an accident and having the air bag launch my leg over my head. I guess the need to elevate my leg outweighed my fears.
After an overnight stop in Florence, SC, we arrived in Florida on Tuesday afternoon. The temperature outside was 60 degrees. To top things off, my dad had a fire in the fireplace! Fireplaces in Florida make about as much sense to me as swimming pools in Canada. But as a kid, I can remember sitting by the same fireplace on cold nights…when the temperature dropped into the 40s or 30s…and soaking in the heat of the fireplace. Now those temperatures don’t seem so bad. New Jersey has thickened my blood a little and given me some “weather perspective.” It is amazing how relative the temperature can be. Canadians swim in 50’s and Floridians build fires in the 60s.
Christmas Eve and Christmas were spent with my family.
I love Christmas. Some of my best family memories are around Christmas. We are a tight-knit family. We enjoy spending time together (most of the time). Our personalities are diverse enough to make things fun. We have great family stories to tell. With five brothers and sisters (one deceased), spouses, and children (twenty-two total) we fill my parent’s small house and always have plenty of activity and conversation.
I spent a good portion of time talking to one of my nephews in the military. He spent a tour of duty in the Middle East and shared some of his stories. The most interesting was hearing about his survival training before deployment. At one point he killed a rabbit with his bare hands and sucked out its eyeballs (apparently loaded with electrolytes) as a source of nourishment. Yum. I think I’ll stick to Gatorade for my electrolytes. Listening to the severity of his training, I realized how spoiled, blessed, and pampered I really am. Running out of hot water in the shower is enough to get my day started off on the wrong foot.
Christmas morning was a special time. It was just my family and my parents. I always treasure these times with my parents. I like the large family gatherings but I find that I like the “one-on-one” times even better. Even in a large gathering, I find myself isolating on one or two people. I would rather get to know one person deeply than twenty people on a shallow level.
We read the Christmas story and then had a sharing time before opening presents. I had each person roll a die and then answer a question based on the number they rolled…
- One thing I praise God for…
- Two good memories from 2009…
- Three things I am thankful for today…
- “For” 2010, I hope and pray that…
- Give a “high five” to someone and tell them what you appreciate about them.
- What do you remember about 6th grade (or being 6 years old for my kids)?
My kids joined right in. When we were done, they wanted us to go around again. I took that as a good sign.
I was glad that my kids could hear my parents share about their days growing up. Family stories are so important. They link us together. They give us a sense of heritage, an understanding of the past, an appreciation of the present.
After sharing these stories, opening gifts seemed less important, less central.
As a kid, I couldn’t wait to tear into my gifts. I remember opening the last gift and having a sense of disappointment. Christmas was done. There was always a let down. Even the best gifts never seemed as good as the anticipation of opening them. No toy ever satisfied. No electronic gadget ever lasted. No shirt, socks or pair of underwear thrilled my soul. Yet when Christmas was done, I couldn’t wait for it to come the next year.
In many ways, Christmas represents life. Many go after the “presents” and find, in the end, that life is disappointing. Nothing satisfies. The anticipation of getting something always outweighs the reality of having it. But we keep going after more.
Meanwhile Christ is forgotten or relegated to the background. He is lost in the materialism and marketing of Christmas. He is lost in the busyness and worries of life.
But just as Christmas without Christ is meaningless so is life without Christ.
Sitting on Christmas morning, enjoying time with my family, reflecting on God’s blessings, I realized that I had already received the best gifts of life—forgiveness in Christ, a sense of purpose, great parents, a supportive family, an awesome wife, four boys, and hope for the future.
Christmas really is about relationships, about Christ. Without Him, life is a nicely wrapped present with nothing inside.
