Here we are at the Christmas season, just like always—yet it’s substantially different. I don’t need to itemize all the reasons our 2020 perfect Christmas seems a million miles away. With the chaos in the world, many may wonder if it’s even appropriate to celebrate. For some of us who hold the memory of lost family members (this year or in the past), it seems ridiculous to use the word perfect at all to describe this season.Â
Yet, when I think of the word perfect, I think of the joy of holding a newborn baby. The sights and smells (okay, most of the smells)—the very essence of that new life—can not be expressed in words. The feeling is beyond expression: the child is perfect.Â
My own children represent my best example of this type of perfection. When I first held them, and even as they grew, I felt the overwhelming feeling that they were perfect and complete. It was a feeling that always transcend logic. No matter what they did or said or what was happening, nothing could take away that original feeling of perfect warming my heart. They were imperfectly perfect and complete. The feeling we get when we think of the Christ child.
So this year, my suggestion is to fill the void of your normal celebrations and gatherings with intentional acts that reflect the Christmas Spirit. Join me in seeing the PERFECTION and COMPLETENESS of the season by doing these two things:
1. Count what you have. Make a list of what is good in your life—even small things you take for granted. What’s right in front of you that you’ve never noticed before? Start at your feet and go up—then count what you appreciate in your surroundings. As simple as it sounds, this practice allows you to focus on what you have instead of what you’ve lost. The sheer number of items on your list has the power to stir gratitude within you.Â
2. Take advantage of the “extra†time that’s been opened up by the cancelled events. Ask yourself: Who in my community, friends or family might benefit from the gift of my attention? A simple phone call or gift or surprise might make their day. It’s not the money you spend, but the fact that you are focusing on something beyond yourself. Your action inspires hope. What’s more perfect than that?
The perfection in this imperfect holiday season rests in your heart. May this be a season of Light, of Birth and of the Perfect Christ Child.