I have so much more appreciation for this time of year than most people i know. I have two different ways I view Christmas. (1) A time to give to families less fortunate than your own. & (2) A time to give my children the type of Christmas I use to DREAM of receiving.
There are not many memories from my childhood that I can speak of with pride. I honestly had more bad things happen than good. Christmas time is no different. Living in a single wide trailer made Christmas time confusing for me. I can't recall a single book or movie that showed Santa entering a home without a chimney, let alone entering a mobile home instead of a brick home.
I vaguely recall a night I heard noises coming from the roof, I was certain it was Santa's reindeer. This was the last time that I still believed.
I can't explain how it came about exactly, but at a young age I was fully aware that Santa did not exists. I knew that it was my parents that stayed up past my bedtime to place wrapped gifts under the tree. I also was somehow aware that these presents did not come from money my father made while working, but instead from donations of local churches. Once my father learned that I no longer believed, this time of year was nothing more than a time of year for all the kids around me to point out how wealthy their families were and how poor mine was. I dreaded the return back to school because I knew I would have to hear about all the wonderful gifts the other kids received, and to keep from giving them "one more thing" to poke fun of me about, i would lie and say I got the same gifts.
When I hear of families today that are going through similar situations, it breaks my heart. It isn't fair for any child to go without, at any time of the year, but more importantly at Christmas time. Believing in Santa gives them HOPE that things will be better and when they don't SEE any blessings they loose that hope and essentially their innocence.
I absolutely love being able to give freely to less fortunate families during the holidays, for if no one had been there for my family we would have been without some of the most BASIC things (Food, clothing etc) on many occasions. I am very blessed to be married to a wonderful, hardworking man that makes sure we are able to provide the best to our children. Also, I am so excited, each year, for Christmas morning to hurry up and get here. I can't wait to see the expressions on my girls faces as they open their gifts.
I love knowing that my children will wake up Christmas morning with toys under the tree that they have "asked Santa to bring them" and when they see such gifts they are guaranteed to believe for at the least another year.
MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL MY FRIENDS & FAMILY!
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