Are you kidding me right now? Even my suggesting you try and make the best of this year is verging on the ridiculous! And, I’m wanting you to consider making it the best Christmas ever? Seriously? Well, yes it’s true and I’m going to suggest it can happen in a few simple steps. Here we go:
Step #1 to Your Best Christmas – DECIDE
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Believe you can. Okay, I know that won’t totally flip the switch, but it’s a start! Open your mind to the possibility of this at least being a ‘good’ if not the BEST Christmas. Your creative mind will start opening up to ideas of how this absurdity can actually be true. Trust me on this one as we go onto Step #2.
Step #2 to Your Best Christmas – CONNECT
I’m sure you’ve been shopping, wrapping, and shipping (or, at least getting ready to), so you’ve been thinking about how you can bless your family and friends this year. Let’s take that a step further; start making a plan to CONNECT even more than in previous years.
Yes, I realize it’s a COVID year and that does change things somewhat, but hear me out. Explore the possibilities, the loopholes, the pushing of the envelope in getting together this year. I mean, if your state has ‘recommendations’ and you are brave (!) then do what you want! Don’t worry about the recommended quarantine. Fly in the grandkids, grab Granny out of the nursing home (she’s your mother and she deserves her best Christmas as well!) Have the local gang over and celebrate like it’s 1999!!
I’m sorry if my views are a little radical for you. I’m choosing to live free and maskless at this point in my life. But, if you and your family are choosing to remain locked-down, you’re on your own for happying-up your Christmas! I’m sure there are lots of possibilities for accomplishing that.
(Hey, but if you want to get a little wild and crazy however, the sky’s the limit!)
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Step #3 to Your Best Christmas – HOPE
There’s no arguing that this has been the most tumultuous year of all of our lifetimes. Much of what has been thrown at us was frustratingly manmade and mostly out of our control. But, here we are and we’re talking about having the Best Christmas. Sheesh. How can that be? Well, I think the best answer is to search out Hope. And, I mean the hope of biblical proportions. The kind of hope found in God’s word. Not the wishing well, birthday candle wishes, or crossing your fingers kind.
If you’re a part of God’s family (a believer in Jesus), you and I have that kind of Hope. The BIG H kind of Hope.
- The kind of hope that is solid in what the future holds. Yes, that means eternal life and in heaven. That solid knowing is a concrete foundation that is there ALL the time. We know where we’re going. The last worry has been taken care of. Romans 8:23-25
- The kind of hope where you can trust that God loves you more than you can imagine and wants His best for you. (That’s sometimes different than what we think is best 🙂 ) Hebrews 6:18-19 (so good!)
- The kind of hope that fills you completely with joy and peace! There it is. Wow. I’ll take that kind of Hope! Romans 15:13.
Here’s a sweet little post I wrote a while back that just might encourage you even more to have hope. ❤️ It’s called, “What is This Thing Called Hope?”
Step #4 to Your Best Christmas – TAKE YOURSELF SHOPPING!
Your family might have asked you what you want for Christmas. Mine usually surprises me and often times makes me cry with the sweetness and appropriateness of their gifts. How do they know what I want?
Sometimes though there are those things you would really love to see under the tree with your name on it. So, right here and now, I make it official! Go buy (or order) yourself the gift that would make you the happiest this year! (If someone gets you that thing, it’s totally okay. Take yours back and get yourself your next best thing! Even better!!)
Here’s my list of gifts I’m considering getting myself this year:
- A cool leather journal. I like this one a lot!
2. A red cast iron Dutch oven (I can just see it sitting on my stove.)
3. A black leather tote 🙂
Let’s Wrap this UP
I hope you’ve found yourself a little more hopeful for a great Christmas in this very challenging year. Maybe I’ve made you laugh or even lifted your spirits. Remember to believe that it is going to be good. It will very likely be different, but if you have that Hope it will always be good! And, if nothing else, don’t forget to go get yourself that Christmas present! The one you know you’ll love, because you’re the one picking it out!
Finding a new purpose in living and joy in the day-to-day was the goal when author Kathy Rowland and her entire family (adult kids and grandkids) moved from the PNW to Texas several years ago. The focus of Quiet Hollow is to encourage ‘next chapter women’ – those who are retired, empty-nesters, or have found themselves without a spouse to jump back into life. And, she shares multiple tips, ideas, and possibilities toward that end. Kathy completed her almost 30 years as an elementary teacher and hopped into over a decade of volunteer work, side hustle-type businesses, and grandchild care before discovering her unique and fulfilling purpose for the next chapter of life. What you read on Quiet Hollow is a large part of that calling. Another part is the happy life she’s leading in Central Texas in the same neighborhood as the 3 big kids and her 5 grandkids. She and her college sweetheart husband made sure to add a pool to their new Texas home, so there are lots of noisy, splashy days in their little oasis of a backyard. Come join her on Quiet Hollow in a conversation about finding and living the life you were created to live in this later stage. The chats will be full of laughter, support, faith, and inspiration to create.
