As children we are so eager for Christmas morning that the anticipation on Christmas Eve is agonizing. Certainly Christmas was and remains, one of my favorite holidays. Children don't really grasp what it means to really give. It is something we are taught in school. Make the appropriate decoration for the appropriate holiday and give it to your you parents as a gift, so they can hand it up on the tree or the refrigerator. But the concept of what it really means to give is foreign to a child in so many ways. "When I was a child, I thought with childish ways"....

Becoming an adult can quickly change how you view the whole giving and/or receiving concept. You are now suddenly "required" to give from your own pocket, no more money from mom and dad to get them gifts. I think this was particularly hard for me to grasp and maybe it still is, a little, because I do love opening presents on Christmas morning, in fact, up until last year I still received presents from "Santa". Crudely wrapped with scribbled writing. Of course, I know this is the imagination of my parents, my father specifically, I think. He cannot wrap a gift to save his life, it's all a bit to "fussy" for him. As an adult I am now "required" to give by some unwritten law, and as my family has grown, so has my Christmas account.

It wasn't until a couple of years ago that I actually "experienced" the joy of giving. Imagine that, enjoying watching someone open a present from you. All the things I had learned as a child suddenly came rushing back to me. The real meaning of Christmas and the written word in the Bible about giving unto others. These concepts became perfectly clear to me. "As an adult, I set aside my childish ways".

This Christmas, give of yourself what you can. Christmas should not be about how much you spend on someone but on the thoughtfulness of the gift. It should be about watching someones face light up over your present, the one you gave with joy in your heart. I am not a parent myself, but I can imagine the shining faces of children on Christmas morning, after all, I was a child myself once. I can hardly wait for that experience. This year, share the real meaning of Christmas with your loved ones, make it extra special. And never forget if you do unto others, it will be done unto you. That little tidbit of information can be used everyday, not just Christmas, so remember it often.