Living Font: Sharing the Holidays

Every year when I place this beautiful, hand made angel at the top of our Christmas tree, I can’t help but laugh a little bit thinking about how she came into my life.

One Christmas during my college years, my mother handed identical boxes to my now sister-in-law and to me.  This wasn’t surprising.  She often sees something she thinks one of us will like and buys one for each of us.  In fact, now she does the same thing with our sons who are not quite nine months apart in age.  This gift, however, brought an awkward moment. My brother and his fiance opened their box to find an angel, just like the one I found in my box that now tops my tree.  Lace angels aren’t exactly the gift every college student is dying to receive for Christmas, so we both looked inquisitively at my mom.  In response she said to my brother and his fiance,

“Some day when you all have your own homes, the two of you can top your tree with that angel, and Amy and somebody can do the same.”

I can still feel the tension as the elephant in the room was pointed out.  While many of my friends were what I would call serial monogamists, I much preferred to meet many people, occasionally date, but mostly spend time with a large group of friends, both men and women.  Would I have loved to have someone sitting next to me on the couch that Christmas day?  Of course I would have.  But I simply had not found anyone yet who was not only worth my time, but worth all of my time.

This morning in church our pastor talked about our God as a relational God who not only seeks a relationship with each of us, but also created us to be with and enjoy one another.  Far beyond creating Eve to accompany Adam through life, we are meant to fellowship with one another, enjoying the holidays, waiting together not only for Christmas, but for the second Advent of the Lord.

For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife. Gensis 2:24

When I look at that angel, I remember that Christmas when I wondered who was out there, waiting to share all of his future Christmases with me.  I am thankful for him, for our children, and for all of my friends and family this holiday season who share my joys and triumphs, my sadness and heart break as well as allowing me to share theirs with them.

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2 Comments

  • Mary C.

    I loved your Christmas story about your precious Angel Treetopper! Thanks for sharing….

    @swtthing3

  • That’s a wonderful story, thanks for sharing it with us.