What If...

Christmas Day is almost here. The most magical time of the year is upon us. The weeks and months of shopping, wrapping, baking, decorating, planning and preparing will soon be realized in the celebration of that blessed Christmas Day. As hard as we may try to keep it from passing so quickly, Christmas comes. And like every other day...twenty-four hours later...it goes.

What if we celebrated Christmas as a season, rather than a day? What if we could spend a few days nestled together with our loved ones, without pressure and chaos pulling us back into reality so quickly? What if we didn't have to cram all the joy and blessings of Christmas into one single day? Wishful thinking, I know. But think about it...

We could slow down and be in the moment. We could rest in the knowledge that we have tomorrow to pick up the wrapping paper and sit by the tree with the peace of Christmas Day still in our hearts. We could spend another day playing games and drinking coffee while eating cookies and watching little ones play with new toys. We could also take much needed naps under fluffy new blankets, or even spend the day in freshly laundered new pajamas. We could bundle up and visit aunts and uncles and cousins for another day of Christmas joy.

What if everyone could enjoy a few more days of Christmas without having to run back to work or to the store for after Christmas sales, or worse yet, Valentines Day candy? What if we didn't see discarded Christmas trees on the curb in front of houses on December 26th because people had to clean up before returning to work? What if we didn't experience the inevitable feeling of letdown due to exhaustion and sadness on Christmas night, because this wonderful day we waited for and prepared for all these months was over just like that?

Christmas is bigger than just one day. I fear somehow we lost the meaning of this blessed day in the mix of commercialism, competition, pressure, and technology. What if we looked back, just this once, and learned from the ones who came before? What if we slowed down and stripped Christmas down to what it is really about... The one silent night when the Savior came into the world? What if we all could experience that peace and joy with the ones we love for a few more days before rushing back into the chaos of the world so far removed from that night in a manger so many years ago?

What if Christmas was a season, not just one day? That, my friends, is my Christmas wish. And who knows? Someday my wish may come true. In the meantime, I'll do my best to make Christmas last for my loved ones, nestled here in our country home, for as long as I possibly can.