To me, the tree brings peace and love and a stillness. I love sitting in the darkness and watching the lights sparkle. A stillness of peace comes over my soul. I think of that first beautiful Christmas night. Oh how I long for that rememberance of what it felt like looking down and knowing our dear Savior was being born. And having a full understanding of His love and birth and the purpose for His life and atonement. I wonder of my looking at the lights in the dark, feels even remotely close to looking at the star in the heavens on that first Christmas night. Regardless, it feels my soul with peace me love and hope. It helps me remember why I love this precious season so very much. I love the goodwill towards men. I love the excitement in the air and the way we all try to do nice and thoughtful things for one another. I love the love that fills my heart.
For me, Thanksgiving is an extension of Christmas. Not a separate holiday but the beginning of the Christmas season. Thanksgiving is to literally give thanks. To list ones blessings one by one and to voice gratitude for those people and gifts that mean so much. What better way to start the beautiful Christmas season than with a grateful heart.
As we allow our hearts to fill with gratitude, our desires to help one another become deeper. We realize just how blessed we are and are motivated to share our blessings and gifts with those around us. When we show gratitude and love, we are honoring our Savior. I look at it like a prayer. It starts with Thanksgiving. In prayer, we give thanks and list our blessings. That is the Thanksgiving part. The ending of the prayer or season is Christmas Day, wherein the things we have asked for our granted. During the Christmas Season, we ask for the gifts we want. We try hard to grant others wishes and desires.
So to me, the tree, so vital to bringing in the peace and joy during this wonderful time of year is vital. Hence it always goes up before Christmas to represent the start of our precious holiday season. To remember that gratitude is the center of Christmas from giving thanks to remembering that precious night so long ago when our Savior was born into this world to teach us how to come home to Him. He prepared the way. We must follow that star and find our way back to Him.
We had so much fun over two days transforming our home for this precious season. Suzi came over with Krispy Kreme donuts and helped decorate our home. We put up the Jim Shore display skipping the village this year. We added the touches of cookie jars and our beloved nativities.
Then came time for decorating the tree. I love unwrapping each ornament. Ones collected throughout the years. From The first Winnie the Pooh ornament to the one collected on Hayden's first trip to Disneyland, to ornaments from each vacation taken and precious moments we wanted to remember. We first decorated our family room tree with all of the Disney ornaments. Oh how I love my tree. I love the joy it brings.
Sunday morning, Julie came to help us decorate the tree in our entry way. This tree holds family ornaments and ones made by Hayden. It holds the memories of a lifetime. It holds an ornament that represents each year of our lives. There are cruise ships and new homes, celebrations of new babies and new dogs, moments I will always cherish and remember. I smiled as I put on an ornament from my days working in the mail room at the MTC and ones Jodi made when she was in high school. I laughed as the fish was hung from all of mine and Suzi's college day trips to Jackson Hole. To the cupcakes for a cure ornament remembering all the countless cupcakes Jodi has made to help me obtain the medical treatments I need. I smiled as I recalled countless memories and a life filled with joy. I love he reminders of good days and precious moments. As I add each one to the tree, I am reminded of all the good gifts I have been given. All of the joy and love that has made up my life. I feel like I am in my own version of It's a wonderful life. I have had a great life and I am so blessed to share it with such incredible people. The blessings we have been given are too numerous to count although we certainly try. As we have been so very blessed in this life.
We ended our Christmas decorating in Hayden's room. His tree is filled with rememberances from his life. From his ornament at birth during the beautiful Christmas season to his years loving Elmo and bear in the big blue house to his Toy story years and all things superheroes. He has a reminder of each thing he was into for each year of his life. He has a rememberance of each vacation. And like me, each life event such as moving or new dogs or accomplishments. I think long and hard as to the ornament that I will add to his collection each year. This year will definitely be something with Legos, so it's a make it year ornament. He will add an ornament in rememberance of getting Maya in 2014. In addition, he has two Grandmas that add ornaments to his collection. Grandma Joyce lovingly makes an ornament each year and dates it. Oh how we love putting them in order and seeing how they all represent her and her love. Grandma Julie adds special ornaments for his rememberances with her from a guitar to moments they have shared together. It is a precious time as we walk down memory lane of Hayden's life telling stories and laughing. (Even if he wouldn't allow the Elmo or Little Einstein ornaments on the tree this year). He is his momma. He has a huge smile stretched across his face as he recounts each ornament and each life event. Gratitude and laughter fills our home. Smiles come easily. Love is so thick you could cut it with a knife. We feel our Savior's love, immense gratitude for all we have been given and the Spirit of this precious time of year is sparked in each of us.
Oh Christmas tree. Thank you for your numerous gifts. For your joy you add to our lives. For allowing us to see how great our lives have been and how truly blessed we are. You being the spirit of Thanksgiving in our home as well as the beautiful and cherished spirit of Christmas. You represent so much goodness and ao much gratitude. You are a reminder of that beautiful night when our precious Savior was born into this world. It was a Holy night that night in Bethlehem and we try to recreate those feelings in our home as we sit and watch the twinkling of the lights on our tree.
My heart prays for peace and love for all those within it's reach. May we all be filled with the magic and love and joy that we call this precious holiday season.
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