And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow,
stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so?
It came without ribbons.
It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags.
And he puzzled and puzzled ’till his puzzler was sore.
Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before.
“What if Christmas”, he thought, “doesn’t come from a store?
What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more?”
What are you doing this Christmas that doesn’t mainly involve a store?
We are:
-visiting nursing homes to play Christmas music
-making cookies
-baking bread to give to neighbors
-decorating together
-listening to lots of Christmas music
-making lots of our own Christmas music
-being sure to enjoy our decorations, even while we do school
-working on some handmade gifts, hoping to be done early for once!
How about you?
p.s. I’m not against shopping for gifts… I do it myself! I just think we need to make time for non-shopping Christmas activities too, because usually, that’s the stuff memories are made of.
_____________________________
Today’s 365 post: Dear Pepper Plant,
Joshua’s 365 post: Our newly decorated tree!
erin
Sunday 11th of December 2011
Have you watched Advent Conspiracy? Anyways, I agree wholeheartedly. I love the idea of acts of service as gifts. My little sister and her husband have offered to watch the kids for me both as a birthday and Christmas gift this year. I can't tell you how wonderful of a gift that has been! As we've been going through our advent calendar this year, I've really tried to focus not on the getting but on the true reason for the season and how we can celebrate that each day.
farhana
Friday 9th of December 2011
I wonder if Jesus ever celebrated his birthday or anyones birthday for that matter. It's sad how we invent things and lebel them as religious practice. Christans need to pay attention to what Jesus did, try to implement them in daily life, not run around to light the house, get the biggest tree to decorate and waste money on gifts.
Kristen
Friday 9th of December 2011
I don't celebrate birthdays because Jesus did. :) I celebrate birthdays because it's a whole lot of fun and because I see nothing in the Bible (either specific or in principle) that prohibits it.
I am well aware of the fact that Christmas is a man-made holiday, so I don't really celebrate it with a whole lot of religious significance. To me, it's more about the fun and tradition. It's not that I think that thinking about Jesus' birth is bad...it's just that we Christians ought to be thinking about Jesus' incarnation all year long, not just in December.
Virginia Dare
Friday 9th of December 2011
I don't know what traditional birthday celebrations might have existed at that time, but the Bible has several stories of Jesus attending feasts and celebrations, including weddings, traditional local festivals, and Jewish holidays such as Passover, as a way to spend time with people and talk about His message. Often these times of plenty and happiness and celeberation make the messages more poignant both to a reader/listener and, one might imagine, any who were present. We can do the same thing today, regardless of who we are: experience celebration while remembering why we're celebrating. Just like weddings, festivals, and any other holidays--even municipal ones like Independence Day!--if the celebration itself becomes the entire focus, that's when you lose the meaning. :-)
Ashes
Thursday 8th of December 2011
Christmas cookies are always a hit at my house. I'm making many of them tonight but I save the more complicated (and fun to decorate) shortbreads for when kiddo is awake.
And on Saturday we'll walk in the Christmas Parade.
adventuresindinner
Thursday 8th of December 2011
Can I somehow convince my sister that this is what we need to do?
Jo@simplybeingmum
Thursday 8th of December 2011
Send her the link to this post? :-)
Jen
Thursday 8th of December 2011
~Took my mom to the local Nutcracker production last weekend ~Canning rhubarb chutney as gifts for my book club and knitting group ~Knitting cowls and hats for nieces and nephews ~Folding origami lights for another gift ~my husband will be baking stollen, his family's traditional holiday bread ~cutting a Christmas tree from our property and decorating this weekend