Christmas Treasures
by Liesel Schmidt
It’s amazing to look at the calendar and realize just how close the holidays are. It’s a bit
overwhelming, actually, how little time is left between now and the end of the year, with so
much still to do before the actual day arrives and Christmas paper is strewn about in memorial
to the feeling of anticipation that was once so neatly boxed and wrapped up and stowed
under the tree. Growing up, Christmas was always so magical, so special even on our tight
household budget. Those were days when the sights and sounds and smells seemed to hold such
unexplainable delight, such rich joy. What treasures awaited this year?
It’s a sentiment worth keeping, a question that should remain in our minds from the very first day
of the year to the very last: What treasures await this year?
As I grow older, that question is no longer asked in simple hopes of bits and baubles, but of
hopes for my life. I’d like to think that I grow wiser, more appreciative of what treasures I
already have, more open to receiving the ones to come. I’d like to think that I won’t be blind to
them so that they won’t pass by without my notice. Most of all, I hope that the treasures I give
outnumber the ones I receive. So many times we have our hands and our eyes tightly closed,
fearful of what opening them might mean, what hurt may come once we let go.
I’ve become more aware over the past few years that, just as moments and unexpected
opportunities and blessings are treasures, so are the people in our lives. They are our treasures,
special and priceless in their own ways, ways that no one else can be. And just as we treasure
them, they treasure us. There’s a preciousness in each of us, one that we so often forget in the
busy bustle of everyday life. We lose our wonder and our joy and our anticipation. We lose sight
of the fact that we are treasures, just as we forget that the people in our lives are to be treasured.
We devalue the goodness and the gifts and allow ourselves to be swept up in cynicism and focus
instead on being bigger, better, faster, richer. We’d do well to take the time and realize what
we’ve lost––so easily seen in the dancing eyes of a child as they gaze at the glow of a Christmas
tree. There are treasures all around us, and there are still more to come.
What treasures await this year?
overwhelming, actually, how little time is left between now and the end of the year, with so
much still to do before the actual day arrives and Christmas paper is strewn about in memorial
to the feeling of anticipation that was once so neatly boxed and wrapped up and stowed
under the tree. Growing up, Christmas was always so magical, so special even on our tight
household budget. Those were days when the sights and sounds and smells seemed to hold such
unexplainable delight, such rich joy. What treasures awaited this year?
It’s a sentiment worth keeping, a question that should remain in our minds from the very first day
of the year to the very last: What treasures await this year?
As I grow older, that question is no longer asked in simple hopes of bits and baubles, but of
hopes for my life. I’d like to think that I grow wiser, more appreciative of what treasures I
already have, more open to receiving the ones to come. I’d like to think that I won’t be blind to
them so that they won’t pass by without my notice. Most of all, I hope that the treasures I give
outnumber the ones I receive. So many times we have our hands and our eyes tightly closed,
fearful of what opening them might mean, what hurt may come once we let go.
I’ve become more aware over the past few years that, just as moments and unexpected
opportunities and blessings are treasures, so are the people in our lives. They are our treasures,
special and priceless in their own ways, ways that no one else can be. And just as we treasure
them, they treasure us. There’s a preciousness in each of us, one that we so often forget in the
busy bustle of everyday life. We lose our wonder and our joy and our anticipation. We lose sight
of the fact that we are treasures, just as we forget that the people in our lives are to be treasured.
We devalue the goodness and the gifts and allow ourselves to be swept up in cynicism and focus
instead on being bigger, better, faster, richer. We’d do well to take the time and realize what
we’ve lost––so easily seen in the dancing eyes of a child as they gaze at the glow of a Christmas
tree. There are treasures all around us, and there are still more to come.
What treasures await this year?
What a fantastic post x
ReplyDeleteI read it a few times and it keeps bringing tears to my eyes. It's really beautiful...
ReplyDelete