The first Christmas after my siblings and I got a paper route was the most exciting Christmas I can remember. I was about 13 and we had never really bought Christmas presents for each other or for our parents apart from helping our parents go to the store. This was the first time we would really be in charge and it was our own money we were spending. Like the story of David and the threshing floor, the guy would give him the place to build an altar, but what sacrifice is there in giving something that cost you nothing? David insisted in paying for it, and this time it would be so much better than having one of us take the money from my mother and hand it to the cashier for a present we hadn't even thought about or worked for.
Without our parents knowledge, we saved our whole paycheck for months. We had no idea what we could get with how much money and we wanted to make sure that we could get something nice. The most exciting part of all of this was that my parents had no idea what we were doing. I mean, they knew we were up to something, but I don't think they knew what it was. Maybe I should ask them. When we finally went to the store, we knew what we wanted, if we could get it. We had been making lists of things my parents had mentioned maybe liking or wanting or things they thought were neat. We ended up getting so much stuff, at least we thought so. We spent probably almost 300 dollars. That was an unheard of amount of money to us. We got my mom her favorite perfume and my dad a cordless power drill he had wanted for ages. On top of these we got a random assortment of other things. We put them under the tree Christmas morning after hiding them in my bedroom for weeks. That still remains my favorite Christmas. I loved seeing the surprise on my parents' faces and their joy that we had picked perfect things. They were overwhelmed and it was so exciting. The secret between me and my siblings drew us together with a common joy and a common purpose.
That common joy and purpose is ours as Christians. It should draw us together and fill us with glee, no matter what time of year it is.
2 comments:
That is such a neat story, causing joy for the ones that cared for you so much. As a parent and now as a grandparent, anything these precious ones (kids and "grands") do for me (and us) just melts me into purple puddles of joy.
Speaking from the heart of a father and grandfather, I imagine your parents were joyed in more ways than their young ones thought possible.
Hope you have a very Merry Christmas. ec
Thanks! You too!
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