Christmas 007

This year I feel like Christmas is already long gone. On most Christmases I feel like it just flies up, waves maybe once, and then is gone before I know it! But this year is different for me. I suppose it's because Christmas started for me when we were down in California in mid-November. Everything there was decorated for Christmas and there was Christmas music playing everywhere. I came home expecting the same thing and there was barely snow, never mind decorations! And I suppose that's because the Americans get in the spirit as soon as the calendar says November and we Canadians feel like it can't be Christmas without snow, so we wait for it! (Boy, are we ever going to be messed up once global warming really kicks in!)

Another reason I feel like Christmas has come and gone already is because we've already celebrated with both our families. My family celebrated with our trip in November to California (and sorta at my cousin's wedding in early December) and Nate's family was last weekend in Saskatchewan. It was SO good to be out at his parents' place for a few days. We took Lennox and just spent a few days catching up, watching our dogs play, walking the dogs, sitting around, watching the men play vids, hearing about wedding plans (congrats Karis and Jared!)...it was a beautiful, wonderful family weekend! But now that we're home, I feel like it should all be over. I suppose sometimes I feel kinda shafted that we don't get to see family actually ON Christmas day. It makes for lonely Christmases (last year and this year both) but at least we've seen our families in the month of December, which is more than some can say about Christmas with family, right? I'm sorry for any of you out there who would love to be with family for Christmas and for whatever reason that just isn't happening this year.

But, with all this talk about Christmas being done, I can't complain too much. I have a full stocking sitting under our little 5' Christmas tree in our basement at home. That's right. Nathan and I went to the city last night and spent some time filling each other's stockings. (We bought snowboards for ourselves this month as our Christmas presents, but Nathan just needed a little something with surprise and wrapping paper on it to open Christmas day) -As a sidenote, we wouldn't normally have full stockings sitting under the Christmas tree either (how "Christmas-ey" is that?!) but when there are no other wrapped gifts under the Christmas tree, well, there just has to be something, right?

So there you have it. Our Christmas. Done already. Mostly. But now that I'm writing this, I'm thinking about it in a new light and maybe it's not so bad that Christmas is "over" but not actually over already. You see, if there is not much excitement but rather loneliness, how much more is there opportunity to look toward the true meaning of Christmas? Family and gifts and food and tradition is all special and I believe that God wants us to enjoy those things at Christmas-time (and all the time), but when those things have already happened and there are still lonely days off to enjoy, what a great reminder that Christ came to earth to be the family to the family-less and the savior to the saved-less? Hmm...what a great reminder on this year when Christmas was done before Christmas...