Let It Snow

MERRY CHRISTMAS

May the God of hope fill you with joy and peace as you trust him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the holy spirit.

Romans 15:13

It is early December and cold outside. I am about 10 maybe 11 and I am in the kitchen making hot chocolate to carry in the air pump thermos. My big brother Billy is yelling from the living room to hurry up or we will not be going. I holler back that he will thank me later if he will just hang on one stinking minute.

Today is a big day as we are headed to my grandparents property to get our Christmas tree. Usually the whole family would go but today was different, it would just be Billy and I making the trip up Bill Hill to the property where my grandparents own a few gold mines. Yes that is true Gold Mines, their gold is even in the Smithsonian.

The property up on Bill Hill holds many great memories of exploring with my siblings and with my cousins the Jardin's. We could spend hours running along Five Mile Creek and through the old apple orchard. We were mountain men, cowboys and great explorers of a long time ago. In the fall there were lady bugs to trap and apples to pick. In the summer we would follow grandpa into the mine to cool ourselves from the summer heat.

Those were now days long gone as grandpa had passed and today it was just Billy and I making new memories and setting out on what was sure to be a big adventure. With Christmas right around the corner we were tasked with finding a tree for our house and a smaller one for grandma. Now I was holding up the show and it was now raining and getting colder.

Once we arrived at the property we had to hurry and find a great tree and get going because an El Camino can get stuck pretty easy on a muddy snowy road and it did feel like snow would fall at any minute. There were no cell phones, neighbors to borrow a phone from and no AAA to come to our rescue if we got stuck.

We rushed up hills and slid in the mud down steep paths made by ancestors of a long time ago. The tree had to be perfect and fit inside the car and the living room. Suddenly, there it was. It was about 8 feet tall and and smelled like the perfect Christmas tree. A cedar with big bushes branches and boy was it wet. Billy made fast work of chopping it down and then we got one for Grandma Hazel too. Then the long walk back to the car. It was now snowing.

I was not much help as I was about 80 pounds and that was soaking wet so a large cedar like we had was a challenge to get to the car. The snow was sticking to the ground, the trees and to our uncovered heads. It was cold. Suddenly Billy stopped and whispered "Listen!" I froze as I was terrified we would run into one of those bears or mountain lions that I had heard so many stories about from my aunts, uncles and parents.

After what seemed like an eternity I said "What do you hear Billy?" " Nothing! Nothing but the silence of a winter snow storm." My whole body felt relief and the grin on his face let me know we were safe. Soon the trees were loaded and we slipped and slide our way up the old dirt road. Chatting about the adventure and drinking amazing hot chocolate. We were heroes, we were bringing Christmas trees home to decorate. Soon they would be covered with old ornaments, tinsel and lights.

Life is a little different today. The old mine was sold, Billy and I grew up and now we have children and he has grandchildren.  Amazing how fast the years fly by but we will tell the stories of the past about ancestors who mined for gold and how we saved Christmas.

There is one thing that remains the same, the opportunity to save Christmas. I do not mean we should all run to an old forest and cut a tree down but instead we should still find a way to save Christmas for a child, a mommy or a daddy. Save the day for a person down on their luck after all we have ALL been there.

Think about this, Christmas is a celebration of a baby coming to earth and loving us. All of us no matter what. The greatest lesson Jesus taught us was that we must serve each other and bless each other. He did. He healed the sick, brought sight to the blind and most importantly he loved us so much he died for us. He loved us no matter what and he wants us to show our love by helping others.

So tonight this blog is simple. How will you serve and bless someone this Christmas season? Its not too late and you do not need money. You can serve at a Christmas eve dinner, take dessert to a local fire station to men and woman working away from the families to keep you safe or you can hand that family with a sign a gift card to use for a hot meal. There really are many homeless that need our love and support.

Then there are the elderly. They are lonely. Knock on their door. Have them over for dinner, take them a card or socks or just stop and say hello. Call your parents. Adopt a family, a puppy or a kitten. 

Glory to God in the highest and on Earth peace good will towards men.

Luke 2:14

I have so much to be thankful for even with the challenges I face each day.  I know just how blessed I am to have a God that loves me so much that he allows me to serve others even when I have limits. I will forever remember that Christmas trip to find a tree. I also remember the Christmases when people blessed our family with love and support. They are memories forever kept in my heart and soul. Memories that I will carry with me as I make My Journey.