My Christmas Experience

Well, as many of you know, this year has been one filled with great emotion.  And, while I have tried to walk this journey with a smile on my face, there have been many dark days.  However, since the divorce was final in July, I have tried to minimize the dark days and look to the future - praying that God will reveal that to me in His time.  And while I have great hope for the future, it doesn't change the fact that holidays are hard.  It's a time when the splitting of a family is at the forefront of my thought - it's simply not right for a mother and a father to not be with their children - all together during such a precious time.

But, it's our reality and I have had to put my big girl pants on to tackle the blues head-on.  So this year, since I knew the children would be gone the week before Christmas, I decided to give back to the community - in various ways - so that I could reflect on the true meaning of Christmas!

On Monday, I cleaned my house ... it was desperately needed as I hosted several girlfriends over that night for dinner and games! Okay, so maybe that doesn't count as "giving back to THE community", but rather "hanging out with MY community which has held me up the past 18 months"!
On Tuesday, I cleaned out our closets and went through our toys and made a big donation to the Nearly New Shop.
On Wednesday, I gave blood which I had not done in many years.
On Thursday, I babysat for dear friends so they could do some much-needed Christmas shopping.
On Friday, I worked several hours at the Nearly New Shop.

And, while I did as I needed to stay busy in an effort to avoid a very quiet house, it was clear to me that so many people are lonely this time of year.  I prayed alot this week for the single parents missing their children, the widowed spouses missing their "other half", the children - young and old - missing their deceased parents ... With each prayer, I was reminded that no matter where my children are at any time during the day, no matter where my parents are at any time during the day, no matter where my brother and his family are at any time during the day, I am so blessed to be a part of God's great family!