365 Days until Christmas

The house is almost quiet. The day has been a full one. The girls are getting to bed and I'm writing a few final words about the day.

It was a wonderful Christmas day. Full of the true spirit of Christmas.

This Christmas day was so wonderful to me that it will probably go down in my history books as one worth remembering. Perhaps this day will be memorable for me because, unlike so many in the past, I was not overwhelmed by places to go, people to see, meals to prepare, and the gathering of gifts.

We had a Bob Cratchit kind of Christmas this year. You remember Bob, the Dickens character in the Dickens Classic, A Christmas Carol, who was the poor clerk of Ebenezer Scrooge. It wasn't that we were poor, overworked or underpaid, but that because of scarcity of funds, our Christmas was a simple one. We spent less this year on Christmas.

Our Children knew going into the season that this would be a lean Christmas.

My wife and I decided not to give each other gifts. With Santa's help, we did all that we could to find gifts for our girls. But the piles were small, and I worried that there would be repercussions.

Yet with less focus on material things we had more time for family things. On Christmas Eve my girls exchanged the one or two gifts they had purchased from the dollar store. They showed a wonderful kind of gratitude and love for each gift and each other. Once the presents were opened we watched videos of our girls, when they were younger, singing and dancing at Christmas time. And then my three beautiful girls climbed into bed.

When Christmas morning came, suprisingly, we slept in. Eventually, the girls woke us up with smiles on their faces. And, here is a first, I didn't ruin the mood. I didn't raise my voice once as the girls opened the few gifts each had received. I was astonished at how sweet and happy they were with the few items they received.

We then visited both sides of our family and had wonderful and delicious meals. It was wonderful spending time with family. And, the generosity of our parents, through the gifts they gave, was also greatly appreciated.

I felt the wonderful whisperings of the spirit throughout the day. Celebrating the birth of the Son of God, the Messiah, the King of kings was as it should be and as I hoped it would be. This day was full of peace, joy, and love. We did as Elder Uchtdorf recommended, we "took a step back, slowed down a little, and reconsidered what matters most."

Today I renewed my determination to take upon the Savior's name, reassess my life, my thoughts, feelings, and actions. It was a day of renewal and recommitment to live by the word of God and to obey His commandments.

Today I saw Christmas through new eyes. Today I saw Christmas through the eyes of a child. I saw the good in the simple, and relished in it.

Maybe I didn't see the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Christmas yet to come. Maybe my heart didn't grow three sizes to large, but I saw Christmas with a new heart. My eyes were opened to the miracles and the blessings in my life. Oh how much I love my wife and my girls!!

And what about tomorrow? What will tomorrow bring? Will it be just another day after Christmas?

Fortuately tomorrow is Sunday and I will be able to attend church and remember the Savior again.

And if I try hard enough, I can keep the momentum up on Monday too!

And, just think, there are only 365 more days until Christmas!

Merry Christmas!