As the snow is falling outside I get the yearning to cuddle up in my favorite chair and pull out a good book to get lost in. The picture of the March girls playing in the snow around Christmas comes to mind. My heart is tender towards them celebrating Christmas with their father gone off to war. They are counting all there pennies and sacrificing while he’s gone. They recognize the hard ship he’s going through being away from them. I relate to this part of the book in several ways. Nine years ago my husband Warren was off serving in a war in the Middle East. I remember being pregnant with our third daughter. We didn’t live close to most of our family and I remember the holiday was coming. It was a lonely thought to think we would be celebrating Christmas without my husband. Just like the March family our means were very limited.
Our friend and family community stepped in to help us through this tough trial. A close family friend offered to buy us tickets to Arizona for Christmas, to be with our family. This was such a delight for us. We would be able to curb the loneliness by being with family. My husband told me not to worry about buying any Christmas gifts for any one in our family he had it taken care of. I found out why the night before we left to Arizona. There was a secret knock at the door and when I opened the door there was a pile of gifts for our family. I later learned that a close friend had offered to take care of Christmas for us. Like The March girls example of helping someone in more need on Christmas morning by giving their Christmas breakfast away. What a beautiful act of charity, by cheerfully giving it away.
Service is the best part of Christmas for me. My kids get so excited about doing twelve days of Christmas for others. Twelve nights all the way up to Christmas we leave a gift on someone’s door step that goes along with the true meaning of Christmas. They love to watch in the distant the surprised looks on their faces. The gift is nothing fancy or expensive but its love for the family that we are trying to express. We look for others who are having a hard time in life and could use some cheer. We have done this for widows, families with sick or disabled children, families whose husbands are deployed, or strangers who seem lonely. Bring joy and happiness during the holidays to others is what makes it so memorable for us.
Christmas is now right around the corner and a new past time we have begun to start is singing Christmas songs around the piano. I loved this part in the book where the March family gathers to sing there favorite Christmas hymns. I started this tradition after being inspired by this seen in the book. I look forward to continuing this tradition in our home. Family truly is key to our happiness on this earth.
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