Holiday Blessings

This past Sunday we assisted a group of church members in taking all the gifts that were under the Giving Tree to their Project Outreach location. We sorted all the toys by age and sex. Because of my organizational skills, I had to make sure the tables looked just right. All the toys had to be facing out and visible to the parents who would be coming through this week, selecting the perfect toys to give their children a special Christmas.

It was an overwhelming experience to see all the toys that were donated over the last four weeks and even more heartfelt to see how many people were volunteering for this event. It was great to see the little children, mine included, sorting the toys, discussing if a makeup set was for a 5 year old girl or a 9 year old girl, and if the puzzles belong with the games or with the toys.

This type of volunteer opportunity pulls at my heart, as I mentioned in my past post.  I was very young when my parents parted ways, under the age of 2, to be exact. My mother was a single mom for many years with very little financial support from my father.  It was a hefty challenge for her to make all the ends meet, let alone provide a nice Christmas for my brother and me.  We were the lucky ones though; we had an abundance of local relatives and my mom’s dear friends who helped to make sure we had a nice holiday.

To be honest, my brother and I never felt like we had little, even that first year when the only furniture in the main living space was a children’s table. It has been over forty years since that first Christmas on our own and my mom still gets upset at the thought of how little we had and how hard it was for her at the time.

I try to remind her she was an amazing mom, always putting us first and providing us with more than we ever needed.  Many years, she worked three jobs just so my brother could play soccer and I could cheer.  We never realized what we did not have or that it was a hard time for her during our early years of growing up.

So what I want to remind everyone this holiday week is simple. Stop. Look around at all you have, all your children already have before Christmas morning even appears. Spend some time and relish in your blessings. Enjoy the time with family and friends. And if you know a friend who is struggling, even a little, stop by and bring them some holiday cheer. There’s no greater gift than love.