Do you remember the feeling of Christmas from when you were a child and everything seemed possible. Santa Claus existed and even the North Pole was real. The joy this time of year would bring. The excitement on Christmas Eve when you were so awake with anticipation, you didn't think you would ever fall asleep. The expectation you felt in the morning when you woke up and realized it was finally here!
The joy and excitement of opening your gifts and rummaging through your stocking. The warmth of spending this time with your family and sharing the experience year after year.
The joy and excitement of opening your gifts and rummaging through your stocking. The warmth of spending this time with your family and sharing the experience year after year.
Of course, these are merely words and don't even come close, for me at least, to expressing the actual flood of emotions you feel during the Christmas season.
Then we grow up and lose a little of that feeling in becoming "Santa". We get more wrapped up in what to buy for whom and forget to slow down and take it all in. The sights, smells and sounds of this time of year. To be reminded of what Christmas used to make us feel as children.
The joy we feel as adults is still there, though it is not as uninhibited as when we were young. It also comes from a different side of Christmas. Giving. The joy of watching others open the gifts that you thoughtfully picked out specifically for each of them. Especially the gifts we give to the children in our lives. We get to see a glimse of that feeling in their eyes when we watch them open their gifts with faces full of sheer happiness.
Of course there is yet another side to Christmas all together. Helping to make a less fortunate person or family have that joyful experience on the holidays when they normally wouldn't be able to. Whether it is donating your time to a soup kitchen or donating toys to an organization. You get a warm spot in your heart knowing that they will have unexpected holiday cheer brought to them. That is also a wonderful feeling.
I cannot take all of this into consideration without saying that I still believe that Santa Claus does exist. He may not be a jolly old man in a red furry suit with a big white beard. But this "Santa" we all truly believed in as children is the spirit of Christmas. He is the joy of giving. He is the wealth of sharing. He is the love we spread to family, friends and even strangers.
Then we grow up and lose a little of that feeling in becoming "Santa". We get more wrapped up in what to buy for whom and forget to slow down and take it all in. The sights, smells and sounds of this time of year. To be reminded of what Christmas used to make us feel as children.
The joy we feel as adults is still there, though it is not as uninhibited as when we were young. It also comes from a different side of Christmas. Giving. The joy of watching others open the gifts that you thoughtfully picked out specifically for each of them. Especially the gifts we give to the children in our lives. We get to see a glimse of that feeling in their eyes when we watch them open their gifts with faces full of sheer happiness.
Of course there is yet another side to Christmas all together. Helping to make a less fortunate person or family have that joyful experience on the holidays when they normally wouldn't be able to. Whether it is donating your time to a soup kitchen or donating toys to an organization. You get a warm spot in your heart knowing that they will have unexpected holiday cheer brought to them. That is also a wonderful feeling.
I cannot take all of this into consideration without saying that I still believe that Santa Claus does exist. He may not be a jolly old man in a red furry suit with a big white beard. But this "Santa" we all truly believed in as children is the spirit of Christmas. He is the joy of giving. He is the wealth of sharing. He is the love we spread to family, friends and even strangers.
I believe that a little piece of Santa is inside of each and every one of us. As adults we become the spirit of Christmas. We spread the same joy and love that we once received as children from our Santa Claus. Santa is in every gift you give, every smile you share, every kind word you utter. That donation made to the less fortunate, in the hopes of bring
them cheer during a rough time.
The joy you spread when you give without the expectation of
what you will receive. That is the spirit of Christmas.
Christmas is not about what you get out of it… it is about
what you give. Giving does not necessarily mean material items or even the biggest price tag. Giving of your heart and of yourself to make someones day more enjoyable. To show someone that, even though they are going through a roungh time, someone cares about them.
The meaning of Christmas is the gift of Joy, Cheer, Family and Love.
Spread some "Santa" to the ones you love.
Spread some to those who are in need of it.
Spread joy to everyone, now and all throughout the year.
Spread some "Santa" to the ones you love.
Spread some to those who are in need of it.
Spread joy to everyone, now and all throughout the year.
Wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas!
