Hello friends,
I haven’t been the most consistent blogger the last few weeks. The truth is that I’ve been feeling a bit overwhelmed. Even for a non-Christian, this is a busy time of the year. I’ve also had a bit of personal upheaval to sort through. All of this has left me without a lot of energy to be the best Miracle Chronicler I can be.
When I was speaking with a friend about it last week, I was worrying that I wasn’t living up to my commitment to be fully present here on The Miracle Journal consistently. I wondered aloud to her, “What can I do? I have to post, but I don’t have anything to say right now.” She responded, “When you don’t have anything to say, don’t post!”
Why didn’t I think of that?!?! 🙂
Stories like this are happening around the country. Click here to read another story from a KMart
So for the next couple of weeks, I’m going to lay a bit low. I’ll still post, but it may not be as often. You can check back regularly or sign up for email delivery of posts (“Miracles In Your Inbox” to the right) so you won’t miss any!
Am I crazy or is this “going easy on ourselves around the holidays” a lesson that a lot of us have to learn? I hear people talk about how stressed out they are this time of year and I can’t help but think that this isn’t what the Three Kings had in mind when they traveled the countryside with their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
Here’s one thing maybe they DID have in mind (well, maybe not in exactly this form, but you’ll get the idea…) I had the opportunity to do a short interview and write this news brief on Friday:
SECRET SANTA PAYS LAYAWAY BILL AT LITTLETON WALMART
Many people bemoan that the Christmas Spirit has become more about the spirit of shopping than the spirit of giving. One man in the Littleton area has brought those two things together at the Littleton Walmart.
According to Assistant Manager RJ Fulton, someone visited the store Thursday and said he wanted to pay off a layaway charge. The employee asked to see his identification in order to match it to the layaway purchase, but the man said it wasn’t something he had put on layaway.
Instead, he wanted to pay off someone else’s layaway charge. Fulton said the customer reached into a box of layaway slips held at the store and randomly chose one. He then paid off the balance.
Because the Secret Santa wanted to remain anonymous, Fulton would not divulge any information about him, including how much he paid to cover the layaway charge.
Several “layaway santas” have been anonymously paying other people’s store bills throughout the country this season of giving.
What’s your best stress reliever during the holiday season?
Head down to the comments and share!
6 comments
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Jennifer
December 18, 2011 at 8:48 PM (UTC -5) Link to this comment
This Christmas we decided to forgo the season altogether and not get caught up in the hustle and bustle and consumerism. Instead, my family and my daughter-in-law’s family have all come down to Argentina. No presents, just our presence with each other enjoying the company, the daily Spanish lessons with Aboulita, the bar-b-que, the bus trips to see the sights, the dips in the pool in the mountains, the “one hour walk” up the mountain that lasted five hours, the trip to Chile, grabbing life by the handful and eating it raw. No stress, no big preparation, just fun,sun and laughs by the ton.
Leah Carey
December 19, 2011 at 7:30 AM (UTC -5) Link to this comment
I LOVE it, Jennifer! That sounds like a divine idea! 🙂
Leslie
December 19, 2011 at 10:08 AM (UTC -5) Link to this comment
This year has been very difficult for reasons which seem to be universal now…no job and limited money. You would think that I would be in a state of despair. At first, I was emotionally devastated.Strangely, now I am not.
This has been the most stress free and actually joyous Christmas season I have ever experienced. You would ask, how could that ever be?
I have been making gifts from my quilt fabric stash. I love sewing and making quilts. When I had a job, I never had the time to sew.When I sew, all kinds of memories of my grandmothers, my great-grandmother and my Mom teaching me little sewing tricks and methods come back to me.
I listen to Christmas music,I enjoy the colors and designs of the fabric,I am soothed by the music, I sew, I remember warm and happy times, I make things for others. My stress goes away completely.
Merry Christmas Leah…Keep the Miracles coming!
Rena
December 19, 2011 at 10:07 PM (UTC -5) Link to this comment
I just blogged about this very topic! For me, meditation helps defray holiday stress a great deal, even if it’s just for a few minutes while standing – better than nothing! Somehow, breathing deeply and slowly and exhaling with intention really helps me relax and remember what the holidays are truly meant to be all about.
One of my favorite and most meaningful Christmases was when I was 18 living in Haiti, working in a hospital. Our “tree” was a little branch in a Coke bottle, we bought a couple of gifts from “Marc the Basket Man” in the village, and we spent the day singing to patients in the hospital and handing out red balloons to the children in pediatrics. By their reactions, I think they had probably never seen a balloon before – their faces were so full of joy and wonder! Human connection… perhaps the greatest gift of all.
Leah Carey
December 20, 2011 at 8:09 AM (UTC -5) Link to this comment
@Leslie, I love that you’re taking this time to do something that you haven’t had time to do while working. And to end up with a quilt…what a beautiful outcome! 🙂 Sending you wishes for a very happy holiday.
Leah Carey
December 20, 2011 at 8:10 AM (UTC -5) Link to this comment
@Rena, the poster on your blog of Santa saying “I want YOU to spend a lot of money” is positively hilarious and so spot on! Thanks so much for sharing your memories – I love the image of the branch in the Coke bottle. Perfect! Wishing you a happy and peaceful holiday.