Commercialism or Spiritualism

Can we have one and not the other? Can we have both? Do some have neither? Thank goodness I don't have to judge!

It is amazing the transitions that take place both in the mind and physical body as we add to our experiences, knowledge base, and just plain old "living". Hopefully, these transitions result in the growth of wisdom. It is these transitions that inspired me to share this blog with you.

I am not going to try to address anything except how MY concept and the the part that I have played in making Christmas a commercial or spiritual experience. I could try to justify my actions but they are what they are. Right or Wrong, well intended or not, they are what they are. All I am doing here is simply writing down my thought process in doing what I have done and am preparing to do.

At this point, I want to share a memory about my youngest boy cub. He and I were alone one Christmas as his siblings were either in the service or out of state. There was a Vietnam vet with a wife and two children and he had experienced Agent Orange and was in bad shape but they had no financial help at that time from the government. Cub and I went to the grocery store and bought food for Xmas dinner, Cub had two "almost" new toys still in the box and he wrapped them for the two children. We delivered that to the family and chose not to give our names to them but just that we came as Christians. Later at Xmas time, the Cub said, "I think this is the most meaningful Xmas I have ever had".

I love Christmas with all my heart and at the core is because I love Jesus and it is his birthday. However, over the years, I have allowed myself to get caught up in the commercial aspect and therefore, have pushed the spiritual aspect to a second place level. This year is my attempt to try to put it back in the prospective that my heart tells me it should be in. I sometimes wonder if my physical limitations have finally made me realize what is truly important. If so, I am truly thankful for them.

Maybe to help clarify my thought process, I should share these feelings with you. First, I love my Jesus and without him I would never have made it this far. Second, I love my children, their spouses, grandchildren and great grandchild more than live itself. That love has often encouraged me to want to make them have the best Xmas that I could. The big problem was that I so focused on the commercial aspect, the physical aspect (cooking, etc etc) that often there was not enough energy left over to truly enjoy the celebration of Christ's birth and the wonderful special time with family. I did that with the best of intentions, however, that does not alter the fact that that energy could have been spent in a much better way. Please don't think this is a "pity party" I would not change one iota of my life since it has brought me to where I am today and with the most wonderful family anyone could hope for. Its just my way of explaining why I am suggesting making the changes we have talked about. One thing I have not mentioned to this point is financial as to me it is the least important in the three priorities. Nonetheless, it is a realistic part. As we prepare for the Alien's retirement, we are trying to get our house prepared for the reduced income that will come. Last but not least, my stubbornness doesn't override my physical limitations anymore. Having said all of this, it is my heart felt belief that spiritual and family are going to be my main focus.

I think the changing of the seasons has caused me to recognize how fleeting time really is. It seems we just opened the pool and now we are closing it. I remember my Dad saying, "Boy time goes so much faster now" - does it really or do we just slow down as our physical bodies go through lots of changing of the seasons?

In closing, we are looking forward to this Xmas season more than ever and truly treasure all the effort the cubs make in sharing it with us. We do realize it is sometimes a hardship for them.