Of Christmas Activities and the Chaos Surrounding.
One cool evening, our youth group piled into “mom whips” and drove the 30 minutes to the Aultman Hospital in Canton. As we sang Christmas carols in the lobby, people would stop and listen, occasionally wiping their eyes and thanking us for spreading God’s love. There was a young man that hurried in carrying a new baby car seat. Someone just became a father. I thought to myself. There were those who came in with blankets wrapped around their shoulders; their haggard faces looking worried and sad. There were small children who would dance to the singing and even a few adults that would join in. There were people carrying gifts and families with the joy of new life on their faces. It was lightly sprinkling when we stepped outside and the guys in our ride said they would get the vehicle and pick us up. As M and I stood outside we talked about the people we had seen. It is sobering to be at a hospital. To think that the people around us may have lost a loved one right then or maybe they were visiting someone with a terminal illness. Both of our eyes were maybe watering a bit. The seriousness of life feels real when you see the faces of those who are carrying that heavy load.
The youth Christmas supper has come and gone. What an evening it was! For gifts this year, we were to fill an 18x12x12 box with anything we wanted. After consuming a delicious supper of chicken, steak, and shrimp kebabs, served with potatoes and fresh bread and chatting about the latest conspiracy theories, we sat a in large circle. The guys started passing out boxes and once everyone had a box, we started playing a very chaotic musical “boxes” without the musical part. Suddenly someone was shouting stop and everyone had a random brown paper wrapped box. Soon the sound of tearing paper and the satisfying sound of tape being peeled from cardboard filled the air. There were gasps of delight and peals of laughter that rang out across that small basement area. The assortment of gifts were quite good. There were picture books and card games and coffee mugs and gift cards. There were an impressive amount of Bluetooth speakers and an occasional tortilla blanket or Mr. Potato Head and of course, a rubber chicken and lots of rubber ducks. One girl even got a message in a bottle. I was quite pleased (thrilled or overjoyed maybe works better) to receive a Ferrari F40 lego car. Sounds like a kid, am I right? I love legos; they make something in my brain click, similar to my love of putting things together like Ikea furniture. Also some of you know that I am an avid car girl and I have a love for most sports cars, like Porsches, McLarens, and Ferraris, especially the F40. So my gift pretty much fit me. There were other gifts that just got to the right person. It was quite amazing I must say. A few of us played Taco, Cat, Goat, Cheese, Pizza (iykyk) which kept us entertained and maybe broke some bones. There was one little finger that got bent all the way back until it touched K’s wrist. She still kept on playing like a real trooper. To finish of the evening, we practiced our Christmas program. The snow was blowing and the temperatures were dropping when we left, the perfect weather for such an evening!
One pleasant afternoon and evening were spent at a friend’s house. The conversations went from people and things to deep topics. Does God have multiple plans for our lives or does He just have one main plan? Does everyone have one real soulmate or is there multiple different people that could work out? Two of us took a personality test only to find out after answering many questions that you had to pay for the results! How disappointing that was! Occasionally, one of us would break into song and if anyone else knew it, they would join in. There were lots and lots of laughs. It has been a while since my cheeks hurt from mirth. Later as we sat in the living room munching on Panda Express, a group of carolers stopped by to sing a hymn and get some food. Teehee! It was cold and sprinkling lightly and we were all grateful to be inside.
We gave our youth Christmas program Sunday morning to the congregation. It went off without a hitch (for the most part) and was actually quite fun! Tonight is our teacher Christmas and we have one more night of caroling with the youth. After today, we have three more days of school and it is showing in the untamed energy of the children. I think the teachers are quite ready for a break. :) My weather app says the wind is making it feel 11° colder than it actually is and for some reason, I believe that! There is rain in the forecast and the roads have been a little slick. Some may be dreaming of a white Christmas, but I am just thrilled to spend Christmas in the sun and warmth. I like the cold if there is ice skating and sledding but, this slush and rain can make the days quite bone chilling although nicely cozy from the good old indoors.
I read this quote as I was scrolling Pinterest one day. It got me to stop and think of all the things that are going well for me right now because in some distant (or not so distant) future, my life could be very different!
“Look around you. Appreciate what you have. Nothing will be the same in a year.”