“I believe the most wonderful/terrible gift we’ve been given is free will. Wonderful because I have choices, and terrible because I have choices.”
This quotation, from my friend, offers a challenge about our daily decisions. Many of us are scurrying and worrying about appropriate gifts to buy. And wondering how we will afford the cost of Christmas. And wondering if we can make it through December. And worrying some more, and scurrying some more…
This is wrong, and we know it. So, just stop. Take some time to inventory the gifts you’ve been given and then give some away. Use that free will in ways that are wonderful. In some circles, this is known as re-gifting. In other circles, it’s called offering a blessing.
Are you an artist, singer, or writer? A fixer of things, a baker, a decorator, an encourager, a listener, a teacher, a loyal friend, or giver of compliments? Do you volunteer to serve your community? If you have a wonderful smile, then use it more. Write more letters, make more phone calls, give someone a ride, open doors for people who are scurrying.
Many of my gifts come from complete strangers. Someone stops me to say they enjoy my columns in the local paper. Or I get letters like the one from a 90-year-old gentleman in South Dakota who reads the Cattle Business Weekly and shared his life experiences. A woman in line to sign the guest book at a funeral remarked, “I know that voice.” Turns out she listens to the radio spot I do on KVSH in Valentine.
Here’s the deal. We have choices about what to pass along, and choosing to “accentuate the positive,” as the old song goes, just makes sense. If each of us chose to give away some of what we have been blessed, with our world would improve, whether or not anyone says thanks.
Here’s your holiday assignment. (I know, like you need another thing to do, right? Try it anyway.)
Make a list and check it twice. Make two lists. One, list the gifts you’ve been given. Ask yourself if you’re willing to use them. Then, list people in need of those gifts. It may be as simple as calling to say you made it home okay, scooping the neighbor’s walk, or as hard as taking your ego in hand and making a long overdue apology. I don’t know what your list will look like. I do know mine probably needs updated.
For all of you who share your gifts daily, thanks. To the grocery checker who knows exactly how to pack the bags, and the one who helps unload the cart onto the counter. To the person who greets customers at the door and sorts out a cart for me. And the people who put carts away instead of leaving them in the parking lot. To the person who came over to help me put groceries in the car, and the one who waved me across the street ahead of them. To everyone who responds to my greetings, and those who wish me a good day.
I think this list is going to take a while. I have a choice whether to do the assignment, or go scurrying. I hope I make the right choice, and that you do too. Remember that no matter how much you give away your heart will never be empty, because Christmas is about celebrating the best Gift of all.
Have a blessed holiday season.