Gifts (December 2010)

From December 4, 2010

At this time of year, our thoughts usually turn to gifts.  According to the dictionary, a "gift" is something given to somebody, usually to provide pleasure or to show gratitude. Though these types of gifts are always a pleasure to give and to receive, let’s not forget in all the hustle and bustle of the season, the gifts of another type. 

Love is a gift.  It is bestowed upon us for our benefit, and for our strength.  Every single human being has the capacity to love, no matter what their circumstances.  “Love is the bond that unites families, communities, and nations" ( Dieter F. Uchtdorf, 2009).  God love us unconditionally, just as our parents love us, and just as we love our children.  There is nothing stronger than a family united by love.  Like gold, real love is of great value, and does not fade in time but only grows in value.

Family is a gift. My family is my blessing, my greatest gift of all.  Like the purifying and calming aroma of frankincense, no matter what has gone wrong in our lives, or where our paths have led – family love heals.  Sure, we have our ups and downs, things we don’t really feel like sharing with each other, but it saddens me when I hear things about family members and the tough time they are having (or successes!), and I never had a clue.  It denies us the chance to express our concern, offer help and prayers, thoughts and support—and the chance for us to express our love.  That makes it all the more important not to wait until something bad happens to say “Hey, I love you!”  We are well aware of time and just how quickly it passes. 

Time is a gift.  We have been given the gift of time to prove what we can do in our lives, not for ourselves, but for others.  And who should mean more to us than anyone else, but family?  Every day is a gift, and every day that we still have each other is a gift.  Right now, at the time of this writing, we still have each and every family member with us —do you not see how lucky we truly are?  Just as the gift of myrrh represents both mortality and healing, so does time.

We have been given love, we have been given a family, and we have been given time.  But we need to constantly remember, that all these gifts can be squandered.  Though we are acutely aware of just how quickly time passes, how many of us are making an active attempt to reach out to a family member, to let them know that they are in our thoughts and that we care?  By not taking the time to do this, we are discarding the gifts of time and family.  Here we have been given our own little gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  We have only to recognize them, cherish them, and use them wisely.   

Later:

 

I am still in denial that it is December.

Tonight was a nice night.  Many thanks to Rob, who continues to take the chill out of my living room by supplying firewood for the fireplace, and for taking the chill out of my heart by just making me happy in general.  And many thanks to my girls and their wildly exaggerated and inflated stories of my driving practices and habits.  They don't know it, but it's all just a scam I do just to keep them smiling.

 

 

Meanwhile, back at the ranch....

Kate continues to struggle with trust issues even though she has been given no reason to otherwise doubt.  She is still so reluctant to completely give of herself emotionally and her head continues to tell her that the happiness she feels isn't real and that it won't last. 

Common sense has been her friend for many years and tells her that she is lying to herself.  So she withdraws into her little shell around her world and tells no one about what is going on in the inside of her heart or the war that is raging inside her head.

Still Later:

Kate really, really wants to sleep tonight.   

The only way she knows she can sleep is with a medically induced sleep.   

She is very tempted to take a pill that she knows will put her to sleep for 6 hours.   

So she weighs in her head the pros and cons and wants to be talked out of it....   

...but it is so very tempting, she doesn't know if she can talk herself out of it.  

 ..................................sleep, where are you?  Are you really there?

With my angels: Madison Buffalo Jump