How about LOVE as a gift for Christmas? Yes I know is not a new idea. Everybody is saying it. But how about listening a bit?
I talked to some of the children I work with and asked what would they like to receive as an "unwrappable" gift. Some of them avoided at first the answer or responded quickly listing all the toys or other wishes they had. But we managed to get over such conversational stoppers and this is what they answered:
Dinner with their family
Spending (more) time at home (or elsewhere) with their loved ones
A friend (or more if it's possible)
It's not a big list. And is not too complicated to make it happen.
And there is a category of children who do not or cannot communicate with spoken language. I "talk" to them day after day and I know what they would what is for people to see beyond their difficulties and accept them as they are - beautiful and loving.
And maybe these would be the best gifts we could offer ourselves.
And maybe we can all stop blaming the materialist world as being something from outside of us.
I believe that be paying more attention to all these gifts that cannot be wrapped we will be able to find the material gifts more meaningful as we will see the love, care and attention behind them.
I know there is a whole battle out there about Santa and what to tell children, and how all this is just a huge conspiracy to make us buy more and forget our traditions and/or God.
What I believe is that it is each of us' responsibility to teach our children to see the meaning of Christmas.
Or maybe we should allow our children to be our teachers.
This is how a 9 year old student from Germany explains the meaning of Christmas:
"Jesus came into the world in a place where no one ever would have expected him. Christmas shows us that we can find God and his love where we expect it the least."
Tomorrow morning I'll be unwrapping with great joy all the gifts I'll find under the tree. And I know my family will do the same (especially me 3 years old nephew). But what I will love most about it is that we will be together. I know I'll get many hugs and kisses. I know I have the love of my family and my friends.
And I will appreciate even more the gifts I've been given until now.
The "It's All For L.O.V.E." blog team wish you
Merry Christmas ! Feliz Navidad ! Froehliche Weihnachten ! 聖誕快樂 ! Craciun Fericit ! Feliz Natal ! Selamat Natal ! メリークリスマス！Buon Natale !
