I wanted to take a few minutes and wish each of you a Merry Christmas. This holiday season has not been at all what I had planned whether it is in real life or on my website. Sometimes that is the way life works out. If you have struggled this December with a less than magical and at times even sad Christmas season, please know you are not alone.
I realize some bloggers would come on their website and only write happy thoughts even in the midst of difficulties. I cannot do that. I’ve never been that way. I can’t present what would be to me a false reality to my online friends. This has been a long and draining five weeks. To be sure, there has been good along the way. But I’m sad it’s Christmas Eve and I don’t even know where the month went. We’ve missed almost everything Christmas-related and were unable to do many things we wanted to do. We’ve been physically sick and are emotionally drained. It’s been a long month that has passed in a flash, if that makes any sense to anyone else.
But I didn’t want to let this important holiday pass without saying how much I appreciate each one of you and hope you are blessed by the Lord in some real way as we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. I hope even if it has been a difficult season for you as well, you can find joy and hope in the midst of it. Even though it has been a challenge, I am still aware of and thankful for how much the Lord has done for me and my family. I hope you can also say the same. ♥
Merry Christmas!
Four Weeks of No Rhythm or Routine
HI beautiful family there of love shining out all the time for us. Thank you for your uplifting message in the midst of your true telling of it all. I feel the same way exactly and that is what came to me in prayer the other day . We need to be authentic in our messages, not telling lies to please people. If we are lined up with GOD GOOD and wish to heal us and others with our actions and prayers, we cannot tella lie to act like thigns are fine and dandy when they are not. Jesus had so many set backs and pain and tears of his own , and alwyas turned to our Father for the answers and the hope and regained his total Spiritual understanding. Our thougts have to be accurately expressed and in ONE ACCORD with the Truth of our spiritual being. We are all ONE inside the Christ Mind and but lining up with our thoughts that become true actions that become our spiritual reality we can feel more honest and doing God;’s work. Things are hard here too. all the time but .. like you are doing, turning to gratitude for what we do have, we can get through it all. My husband is a thousand miles from me in a hosptial… our mom is farther from him in another hosptial. I have felt not great either, alone all the time with m Spirit cat and having to seemingly beg for rides places , since my car burned up a few years back. BUT.. if I pause.. and get still, that still small voice comes in to just BE…BE HIS CHILD.. Be the US that was before time began.. in our Spiritual Oneness with our Father. Together . like you are.. is huge . ANd I do have Erick here in town recovering from his liver transplant totally. and his five eye surgeries .. all blessings. I do have BART here, ignoring the twho box houses I just made for him ha haha so I am making supper out of what Ihave which is not a lot but being creative is fun. right” and it is something…. it is not nothing… i Have a poem to send you I wrote about that when many students were kille din a huge train disaster I will find it an post it for you and me too to re read… it is always SOMETHING not nothing to think good thoughts though feeble.. to get a glimpse of our ONENESS toegehter. You and I together now in this email and I can make you tea of Love and serve you.. and cover you with a nice warm blanket and we can be together in this holy space YOU created for us. One.. not alone, not fake . but really God’s kids . Love to you all there from here. I am so grateful for you and your posts and your family and recipes and your amazing creativity teaching. I a school teacher of fifty years.. and lvoe new concepts , new ideas for kids…. kids people call stupid or dumb.. who blossom when we give them hope in their interests .. and their work their way. No students at RISK with us in there. Love to you and blessings and rest.. the word form God is REST and BE MY LITTLE CHIDLREN .. I will take care of you… Love from Merri and Erick and Bart in warm weird now weather in Southern Minnesota.. shining with you in Truth of authentic us. x
Merry Christmas to you, Merri! May you and Erick and Bart have a lovely day.
Sallie
Sallie, thank you for being authentic with us. It helps people who wonder what’s wrong with them when they struggle and things don’t look like they hoped or envisioned they would. Merry Christmas and know how thankful I am, as a single mom who is AWAKE and homeschools a special needs son, for your posts and resources !! Blessings to you. Wendy
Thank you, Wendy, for your kind words. I hope you and your son had a good Christmas together. ♥
I spent mine sick in bed this afternoon and evening after being unwell since Wednesday. It’s a fitting ending to the 2023 Thanksgiving and Christmas season. Like I said to Caroline tonight, laugh or cry. Today was just so ridiculous, it made me laugh (when I felt well enough to laugh – lol!).
Merry Christmas!
Sallie
Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year! We’ve been sick for most of the month. The children have been a big help with gift wrapping and other tasks.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, Peggy! I’m sorry to hear your family has been sick as well. Caroline was a great help to me. Her assitance with wrapping gifts and stocking stuffers made a big difference.
It’s a shame so many bloggers only ever write happy thoughts on their blog. Doing so steals from others the chance to learn from how other people endure and get through problems.
Hi Ticia,
Thank you for that great insight.
My thought has always been that if a blog reader were to meet me in person, she would find me pretty much as I present myself here. I try to be myself as much as possible (while protecting the privacy of people in my circles of real life influence).
It’s the same reason I don’t use a fake “podcast voice” when I make a recording. I talk into the microphone the same way I would speak in a regular face-to-face conversation.
Good to see you!
Sallie
That’s my thought process as well on blogging.
I still enjoy reading your posts, but haven’t always had things to comment that didn’t come off as a comment for comment’s sake.
Merry Christmas, Sallie!
I think I’ve finally figured out that it’s okay to spend the holidays with the people in my life who want to be there. It finally dawned on me on Christmas Eve when I tried for the last time to bless some people who have been behaving in a toxic manner toward me and my husband. We’ve finally realized that, while we shouldn’t reject them totally, it is best for us to let them be alone if they want to be. of course, we will still pray for them because they’re part of our family, but this year we chose to have a happy Christmas with those who want the same. That’s just what we did, and it was the nicest Christmas we’ve had in a few years.
Hi Cheryl,
I’m so glad you had your epiphany about what you wanted to do with your Christmas celebration! We had a number of ruined holidays early in our married life. Eventually we decided we were going to do our thing and remove the possibility of people ruining it. It has meant often being alone, but it’s worth the trade-off overall.
I don’t know if you’ve ever seen this post (link below). I wrote it eight years ago. I would guess some of it will resonate with you (and maybe someone reading this will find it helpful as she thinks about next year).
Merry Christmas to you!
Sallie
https://sallieborrink.com/saying-no-holiday-pressures/
Thank you, Sallie. I have read that post before, but I re-read it, and it’s confirmed quite a bit of what I’m trying to do. It’s interesting that you wrote that post pre Covid. I think that the whole plandemic fiasco has worsened our relationships and made the rifts larger. The rift that’s most painful for us right now is the one with our daughter and son in law. However, our three sons helped us realize that there are people who want to celebrate Christmas and share its joy. I will definitely be referring to posts on your website to help as we move forward with this. Thanks again.