White Christmas?

*WARNING*

Megan rambles beyond this point

Christmas is a happy time. I know it can also be a stressful time, but overall, this time of year is beautiful and full of love. I've been thinking about what we do to ourselves during this season. We listen to certain music, we watch certain movies, we wear certain colors, we decorate our personal spaces in a certain way all in order to help instill a certain feeling within ourselves. So what is that feeling we want. The "reason for the season" is mentioned often as a subtle reminder to not go overboard. We celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. President Gordon B. Hinckley said this in his 1997 Christmas message titled "A Season for Gratitude":
We honor His birth. But without His death, that birth would have been but one more birth. [...] We love Him. We honor Him. We thank Him. We worship Him. He has done for each of us and for all mankind that which none other could have done. God be thanked for the gift of His Beloved Son, our Savior, the Redeemer of the world, the Lamb without blemish who was offered as a sacrifice for all mankind.
How many times do we actually contemplate this aspect of the holiday? What we are truly celebrating?
In contrast to that, this time is also full of traditions. Traditons are an important part of living on this earth with your family. dictionary.com claims a tradition is "the handing down of statements, beliefs, legends, customs, information, etc., from generation to generation, esp. by word of mouth or by practice." We all have traditions that we feel are important to hold to make it feel more like Christmas. Omelets & orange rolls for Christmas breakfast, decorating the Christmas tree together, looking at the Christmas lights together, we all have our own little things that make it feel more like the holiday we knew growing up. I believe that it is in the human nature to reminisce and make Christmas feel like it did when we were younger.
Traditions. Gift giving is a big tradition. And I think this can also be where we may confuse our children. I've always been in love with the idea of receiving a gift. There's something about the anticipation and suspense of waiting along with the pure joy of knowing that someone cares for you and wanted to express that by giving you a gift. Not that I expect a gift, just that I appreciate it if I recieve one. But why do we focus so much on gift giving during this season? And does it cause more problems than solutions? Children can often get greedy by requesting certain gifts, or a large amount of gifts from their parents or from Santa Claus. I understand part of the encouragment given to list making. When giving a gift, you want to give that loved one something they will want or will use so that it doesn't just become junk in their lives(because who needs more junk?). I do love the tradition of gift giving. I may not be great at it, but I enjoy thinking of a specific individual and trying to make them happy by giving them an item they would appreciate. While its good to tell them you love them, giving a gift can be a way to show that love as well.
Are our traditions in the right place? Think of our movies and music that we are entertained by during this season. I LOVE Christmas music, movies, stories, and books. I've noticed some trends though. Some of our music focuses on the need for it to be winter for the holiday. Have you ever dreamt of a white Christmas? I have. Have you ever felt like you were walking in a winter wonderland? I have. Does Santa Claus show up in places that aren't winter? Can you even have Christmas in warm weather? Well, of course, I mean how else would I know that Mele Kalikimaka is the thing to say on a bright Hawaiian Christmas day. I recently read the book Skipping Christmas by John Grisham. It's been made into a movie which is fun and cheesy as most Christmas movies are. As I was reading this story, I felt some connection to the main characters. Despite the biggest concern of spending $6,000 on previous Christmases, part of the family was not going to be present so they didn't feel like it would be as worth it to do all of the traditions they did yearly. The way the author was able to do this with these characters is by making them a family who wasn't overly involved in a church. It's never mentioned that they went to church and it was just a very interesting concept that was written about. I always feel the need to watch "It's A Wonderful Life" on Christmas Eve, or near it. It isn't necessarily all about Christmas, but it does make you feel one of those feelings of Christmas. A reminder of how much you love you have for your family and be grateful for the lives we have been given.
So traditions can be good or they can be overwhelming. Elder Donald L. Hallstrom mentioned the following in 2001:
Uplifting traditions play a significant role in leading us toward the things of the Spirit. Those that promote love for Deity and unity in families and among people are especially important. The power of tradition, however, poses a significant danger. It can cause us to forget our heavenly heritage. To achieve eternal goals, we must reconcile our earthly culture with the doctrine of the everlasting gospel. This process involves embracing all that is spiritually elevating in our family and societal traditions and discarding that which is a barrier to our eternal view and achievement.
So how do you do it all? How do you have the traditions that uplift and unite your family without placing a barrier to the progression that we all need?
We each have to answer this in our own way, and I can't say that I have the answers even for our own little family. I can say that I appreciate hearing how others deal with this decision for their own lives. One family I know of gives each of their children one gift and that's it. I know that other families make a great effort to enforce the story of Christ's birth by reading the story as a family, acting it out, or doing many other things. These are beautiful. And in reality, I think that we can all feel the spirit of Christmas in the way that connects to us. President Hinckley shared these thoughts in the same message as listed previously:
Christmas is more than trees and twinkling lights, more than toys and gifts and baubles of a hundred varieties. It is love. It is the love of the Son of God for all mankind. It reaches out beyond our power to comprehend. It is magnificent and beautiful.
It is peace. It is the peace which comforts, which sustains, which blesses all who accept it.
It is faith. It is faith in God and His Eternal Son. It is faith in His wondrous ways and message. It is faith in Him as our Redeemer and our Lord.
We testify of His living reality. We testify of the divinity of His nature. In our times of grateful meditation, we acknowledge His priceless gift to us and pledge our love and faith. This is what Christmas is really about.
I am grateful for so many things in my life. I have so many individuals who I love and have made a huge impact in my life. I am grateful for the opportunity I have to wonder, discuss, and make a choice about how I live my life and how to raise my children. I hope that I can celebrate Christmas in a way to bring myself closer to my children and them closer to Heavenly Father. I hope your Christmas is not stressful, but is beautiful and a season of love.