May peace and joy continue to be our cherished tradition.
I remember discussing with my husband early on in our marriage what our Christmas traditions would be. I wanted to set them in stone and begin them right away. Each year, however, we ended up doing something different. We started off opening gifts on Christmas morning, then sometimes we opened them on Christmas Eve. At times we spent them with family, other times it was just us and the kids. A couple of years back, I became frustrated with the fact the we did not have any traditions at all at that point. Nothing stuck, there wasn’t a constant thing. Not the Christmas cards, not the matching pajamas, or even having presents wrapped in time to be under the tree (or sometimes even wrapped at all, if I’m being honest)! It wasn’t until this year that I realized one constant thing, peace. No matter what our Christmases looked like, no matter who we spent them with, my goal was to be at peace. We never stuck to a routine or tradition, we didn’t always have an exquisite Christmas dinner or amazing lights and decor, but we always ended up happy together. I can look back each year and see my kids’ smiles in the pictures and recall sitting down between all the ripped wrapping paper feeling at peace.
This year was quite special! We went to church for Christmas Service, which was very nice. Our kids participated in the City Kidz Church Christmas Choir for the first time! They dressed to impress and did so well in the choir and in the live nativity scene. After church we headed over to my mom’s house, where we played family games, had dinner, watched Christmas movies with hot chocolate and slept over to spend Christmas morning together. On Christmas morning, my mom prepared brunch, and we spent the day opening gifts, sharing and enjoying family time all day long. I was sick with an upper respiratory bacterial infection, so I spent my time on the couch witnessing it all. I was happy, though, I was at peace. I was able to see everyone smile and laugh, eat and share. We were safe, happy and healthy. Coming to the realization that peace has been the tradition all along, filled me with joy. I am hopeful that, going forward, no matter what our Christmases look like, we will always have a tradition, one we’ve had all along, one that only God can truly give. May peace and joy continue to be our cherished tradition.
‘And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, ‘ -Luke 1:14 ESV
‘Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. ‘ -John 14:27 ESV
•Krys• 