Christmas

Alright...you got it! The Christmas post is finally here! I wish I knew how to upload my favorite Christmas songs on here, but, sadly, I'm still quite "blogger ignorant." I can still write about my favorite Christmas songs though right? Alright, lately I cant get enough of Amy Grant. Her Christmas music, to me, embodies all that is good about Christmas. It is perfect for a night drive to see Christmas lights, it's perfect for a warm fire and a cup of hot chocolate. It's perfect. Not only does she sing all the best songs, but I love a soloist voice. Especially her's. I'm a big sucker for Sufjan Stevens' Christmas cd as well...it's just so innocent and charming...how could you not love it?

This Christmas for me is definitely an interesting one, as it is my FIRST American Christmas since 2005! My last two Christmases have been in Italy, where traditions are different, but the gap is definitely getting smaller. My best memories of Italian Christmases were eating "Pandoro" Christmas cakes (I'm still not a big fan of Panetone), seeing all the festive Christmas lights in downtown, and going to midnight mass (even though I'm not Catholic). Even though I was so far from home, and we didn't have a Christmas tree or money for gifts, these were some of my favorite Christmas experiences. It was so simple...and I think that was what made it so beautiful. Now that I'm home...the Christmas tree is back and "black friday" now has a name for its outrageousness. I'm so excited, though, for the opportunity to serve. Ok, so I haven't done an abundant amount of service so far, but I really want to. The last two years, giving myself to service and thinking of others instead of myself, I really realized how amazing it really is. Christmas gifts get old, out of fashion, break and tear...but the impact you have on someone else is something that lasts. For me, the only way I've been able to recapture the joy and exuberation I felt as a kid and waking up to see presents surrounding our Christmas tree, is through service. The feeling you get by helping someone else, by bringing light and hope into their life, supercedes any possible gift santa could manage to stick through the chimney. And in the end, I'm sure that's how Christ would want us to remember His birth anyway.

-Roscoe