Christmas 2015

As I begin writing this post, there are only about 40 minutes left of Christmas Day, 2015. 

Isn’t it funny how all the preparations we do to be ready for December 25th take so long...and then it’s over in a day. Well, not ‘over’ over...just done.

It’s kind of like a wedding with all the plans that are made, people involved and details worked out only to have the wedding ceremony over with in about 20 minutes (and a reception that lasts a couple of hours). Then it’s over. And then, the hard stuff starts like being married “...till death do us part.”

But I digress. (I’ve noticed that I do that a lot when I’m writing these blogs. My mind digresses a LOT! If you could see inside my mind, it would probably look like a jukebox, a playground at McDonald’s, with lots of DisneyWorld thrown in.)

When Christmas is over, sometimes all the joy and season’s greetings can seem to be over, too. People seem to be a little friendlier during the holidays...wishing total strangers to have a merry Christmas!

Generosity comes a little easier. The bell ringers find the red kettles a little heavier when they remove them from their stands because folks dug deep into their pockets to share their loose change to help The Salvation Army.

Goodwill toward men. We need that all year long.

I’m a Christian...and I try to have goodwill toward others on a daily basis, but some days are harder than others and I find myself not always living out what I say I believe. Thankfully, I serve a forgiving God who knows I’m gonna blow it and offers me second, third, and more chances to make it right.

Christmas has been a little different for us this year:
We had two deaths from our congregation on Christmas Day, and that’s an especially hard time for families to lose loved ones. It’s also hard on pastors who need to share family time and church work.
I got sick with bronchitis and a sinus infection. When I spoke, I sounded like I was going through puberty...and I was unable to sing the solo I’d been asked to share at one of our six Christmas Eve services at church.
We moved into a new (to us) house the same week as Christmas. (Not something I'd do again. Kinda like the car ads where the little disclaimer comes up: "Professional drivers on a closed course. Do not attempt." This was not one of our best ideas.) Joe was busy as usual with church matters, yet was able to do a lot toward our move, too.
There are so many boxes stacked around our house, it almost looks like a warehouse.
I’m still trying to find things that I need, but it’s been an adventure unpacking boxes that have been stored since our 2012 move!

Things have been quite chaotic at times, and in the midst of this move during Christmas week, we’ve seen The Church in action! Volunteers from our new church (First Broad Street UMC) came to help us move, paint, unpack, and feed us. One guy in particular fixed so many things in the house that I told him we’d never be able to thank him enough for all he’d done...so we’d just have to adopt him!

Where am I going with all this? Let’s keep this good stuff going. Christmas cheer can last all year! Hey, that rhymes!

Let’s say it together now:
“CHRISTMAS CHEER CAN LAST ALL YEAR!”




With every blog, I close with this challenge: If you have a pulse, you have a purpose. Make your life count!

Discombobulation

Have you ever driven to a store or mall to shop, then walked out to the parking lot afterward and not been able to find your car?

It happened to me the other day. When I couldn’t spot my Honda CRV, I felt this burning sensation inside.

Was my car stolen?!?
Of course not! I have an alarm system!

But what if it didn’t activate?!?
Of course not! The alarm system works just fine! Sometimes it goes off when I’m sitting in my car, unknowingly hit the remote door lock when I’m fumbling around with something, and then put the key into the ignition to start my car!!! Sets off the alarm every time...and boy, that thing is loud! It won’t stop until you unlock the doors...and you have to do that with the remote!

Maybe I probably just went out a different exit than where I entered. Nope. Can’t be. Lowe’s stores only have entrances and exits in the front.

I was in a fix. My car was definitely gone. I figured I should call the police, then call Joe and tell him what happened. Oh dear.

I couldn’t believe my car was stolen from a Lowe’s parking lot! It’s the holidays! And we’re in the midst of moving to our new home! This was a lousy time for something like this.

...and then I remembered.

Joe and I traded cars with one another earlier that day so he could get my tires checked before our Christmas trip. In all the scenarios I imagined, I forgot to imagine that maybe...just maybe...I was looking for the wrong car.

Just another day in the life of a discombobulated woman.




With every blog, I close with this challenge: If you have a pulse, you have a purpose. Make your life count!