One Day Left

Well, the clock is ticking, time is running out before Christmas, and I need to gather the gifts that I have purchased, make any last-minute additions, and try my best to have everything completed because my opportunities for additional shopping/making/gathering are quickly leaving.  Christmas is Saturday.  We will have a relaxed morning, opening gifts, and then go over to my Father-in-Law's home.  We'll bring him some ham for his dinner, and his gift, spend an hour or so with him, and then return home. 

Christmas spent with family is always special.  Don't be a Scrooge!

My husband's birthday is Sunday.  It is always tricky to get a cake or other things because everything is closed on the day before his birthday.  So there are no cakes that haven't been frozen for the holiday, and if I forget anything I'm unable to get it because everything is closed on the 25th.  It can make his birthday a real challenge.  I don't have any great gifts for him this year and I'm not very happy about that.  I have a lot of little things and his "man bag" for his chain maille supplies and other assorted things that he carries back and forth from his employment, but I don't have a really good "wow" gift.  It won't go on the books as one of my best holiday efforts ever, but money has been really tight for me, as for many, so we have all done what we could. 

His cake won't be this fantastic, but the sentiment will be. 

I hope that in spite of the shopping, wrapping, cooking madness, you give yourself the opportunity to think about the things that are really the most important in your lives.  Those things for me are are family, love, art, and faith, not necessarily in that order.  After all, if you have the love of family, exchanged gifts are not necessary.  Spending time with each other is the most important thing.  I urge you to exercise your faith over the next few days, and indeed daily, by showing kindness to others and by walking this earth gently.  And finally, practice your art.  That art could be music, graphic, or words, it could be dance, arranging flowers, or calligraphy; it really doesn't matter what your art is, as long as it is from your soul.  Art produced from your soul is a song of praise to Spirit, no matter what form the art takes.  Give yourself permission to Praise through your art.  It will give you happiness which, in turn, will make others joyful.