Sunday, December 23, 2007

Merry Christmas!

It is time for me to sign off from blogging for a few days, so that I can fully take in each and every moment of this magical time. I wish each of you a blessed Christmas filled with joy, love, and happiness.

I want to leave you with a story I received via email. I am not one who likes to read forwards, but this one brought tears to my eyes.

Enjoy!
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The "W" in Christmas Each December, I vowed to make Christmas a calm and peaceful experience. I had cut back on nonessential obligations - extensive card writing, endless baking, decorating, and even overspending. Yet still, I found myself exhausted, unable to appreciate the precious family moments, and of course, the true meaning of Christmas.
My son, Nicholas, was in kindergarten that year. It was an exciting season for a six year old. For weeks, he'd been memorizing songs for his school's "Winter Pageant." I didn't have the heart to tell him I'd be working the night of the production. Unwilling to miss his shining moment, I spoke with his teacher. She assured me there'd be a dress rehearsal the morning of the presentation. All parents unable to attend that evening were welcome to come then. Fortunately, Nicholas seemed happy with the compromise.
So, the morning of the dress rehearsal, I filed in ten minutes early, found a spot on the cafeteria floor and sat down. Around the room, I saw several other parents quietly scampering to their seats. As I waited, the students were led into the room. Each class, accompanied by their teacher, sat cross-legged on the floor. Then, each group, one by one, rose to perform their song. Because the public school system had long stopped referring to the holiday as "Christmas," I didn't expect anything other than fun, commercial entertainment songs of reindeer, Santa Claus, snowflakes and good cheer. So, when my son's class rose to sing, "Christmas Love," I was slightly taken aback by its bold title.
Nicholas was aglow, as were all of his classmates, adorned in fuzzy mittens, red sweaters, and bright snowcaps upon their heads. Those in the front row- center stage - held up large letters, one by one, to spell out the title of the song. As the class would sing "C is for Christmas," a child would hold up the letter C. Then, "H is for Happy," and on and on, until each child holding up his portion had presented the complete message, "Christmas Love."
The performance was going smoothly, until suddenly, we noticed her; a small, quiet, girl in the front row holding the letter "M" upside down - totally unaware her letter "M" appeared as a "W". The audience of 1st through 6th graders snickered at this little one's mistake. But she had no idea they were laughing at her, so she stood tall, proudly holding her "W". Although many teachers tried to shush the children, the laughter continued until the last letter was raised, and we all saw it together.
A hush came over the audience and eyes began to widen. In that instant, we understood the reason we were there, why we celebrated the holiday in the first place, why even in the chaos, there was a purpose for our festivities. For when the last letter was held high, the message read loud and clear: "C H R I S T W A S LOVE" And, I believe, He still is. Amazed in His presence... .humbled by His love. Again, HAVE A BLESSED HOLIDAY SEASON AND A MERRY CHRISTMAS!

15 comments:

Maddy said...

A lovely time, sometimes I feel like life is a dress rehearsal and I need to climb down and pay attention to what's really happening too.
Best wishes

This is my calling card or link"Whittereronautism"which takes you straight to my new blog.

Brittany said...

Merry Christmas!

Julie Pippert said...

What a sweet story. :)

Enjoy your holidays.

Julie
Using My Words

Kellan said...

I loved that story - it brought tears to my eyes. Merry Christmas to you and your beautiful family. I will see you soon. Kellan

JEWELGIRL said...

Ah, You actually open e-mails!
I am impressed! Best wishes &
Merry Christmas! Glad you liked
the story!

Family Adventure said...

Merry Christmas, Kathryn! To you and your family.

Heidi :)

painted maypole said...

I've seen that e-mail, too. it's a good one.

Merry Christmas!

Jen said...

Have a wonderful Christmas and when you're back, email me with your address. You won the book and tea contest!

Chrissy said...

Merry Christmas to you and your family.

Momisodes said...

Merry Christmas to you and the crew :) Wishing you all beautiful memories !

Unknown said...

That's so angelic. I hope you and the men folk have a wonderful Christmas.

Homegrown Tribe said...

Great Story! Christ Was Love!

merry Christmas!

OHmommy said...

Beautiful!

Merry Christmas.

Burgh Baby said...

Merry Christmas!

Blog said...

Pretty tree! Hope you had a nice Christmas! :) Happy Holidays!

Words To Live By

Be grateful for each new day.
A new day that you have never lived before.
Twenty-four new, fresh, unexplored hours to use usefully and profitably.
We can squander, neglect, or use them.
Life will be richer or poorer by the way we use today.
Finish every day and be done with it.
You have done what you could;
some blunders and absurdities crept in;
forget them as soon as you can.
Tomorrow is a new day.
You shall begin it well and serenely and with too high a spirit to be
encumbered with your old nonsense.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson