The Reason for the Season- Blogmas Day 2

December 2nd 2017

“Christmas, my child, is love in action. Every time we give, it’s Christmas.” -Dale Evans

I wanted to start my first real day of Blogmas talking about the reason for the season for two reasons:

1. Although I used a Christmas quote and the series is called “Blogmas”, I want to use this as an opportunity to remind everyone that Christmas is not the only holiday recognized at this time of year and this series will not be limited to just Christmas, but the holiday season as a whole. Whether you celebrate something or not.
2. I find that the true reason for the season often gets lost in all the fancy gifts and decorations so I want to drive the point home with this post before we get started on our December journey together.

The reason for the season is to give. Giving does not have to be expensive. Giving does not have to be physical at all. You could give your time, your love, your patience, your gratitude amongst a plethora of other spiritual and emotional things that are not tangible.

For example, if you do not have the money to donate to charity, you can donate your time. This time of year, many organizations that buy gifts for financially underprivileged families need help with collecting donations and wrapping gifts and even packing the gifts up to be distributed. Shelters and soup kitchens need help to serve holiday meals to people who can’t afford to cook their own meals at home. Hospitals love having volunteers to come spend time and play with the children during the holiday season. There is so much to do with your time that could help people in need.

You can also give people your love. Spend time with the people you love. Enjoy experiences together. If you can’t afford to buy all of your friends gifts, plan a day together so you can create memories. A gift of love and presence is just as much a gift as anything you could buy from the store, but memories last even longer.

You can also give in simple ways, like donating old clothes and coats to charity drives or helping your parents clean the house for holiday parties and gatherings. You could even give the gift of cooking a family meal and surrounding yourself with people you love. And quite often, the gifts you can’t wrap are the most amazing ones.

If you are able to afford to give this season, I would suggest participating in the Angel Tree Charity events that Salvation Army does during the holiday season! I like them because they are super fun and for a great cause. You can find little Christmas trees in malls and shopping centers with little tags on them of things the charity needs, then you buy it in the mall and bring the tag and the item back to them! They have everything on there for bulk packs of socks to toys to televisions. Help make the season merry for people in need!

Although I will probably be going through wishlists and gift guides over the next 23 days, I still want to remind everyone that gifts are not everything. Remember, the reason for the season is giving and surrounding yourself and others with love and joy.

2017 has been a rough year in a lot of ways, let’s try to make this holiday season one filled with joy and appreciation for those around us.

~Jess