Christmas Chaos or Christmas Peace?

As I have said before, in the past, I have had a hard time with the holidays. They can be so stressful and chaotic. There's the added family drama, the financial stress, the disruption of the "normal" schedule, and all of the expectations that come with that "perfect" day. Since I know that these are the things that make the holidays unpleasant and stressful for me, I have chosen to simply eliminate most of those issues. I found that most of the things that really bothered me, were all things that I could choose to change or they were things that weren't my business at all.

This year, I have done my best to strip away all the expectations. I truly believe that once we accept an open mind to new and different experiences each holiday season, we allow ourselves to create new beauty and joy. Too often I find that I wish things would have just worked out like such and such year, or that I could repeat an experience or meal, or relationship that happened before. When I sit around expecting things to be the way they WERE, I rob myself of what COULD BE. The beauty of the holidays is that we are creating new family traditions, new meals, a new idea of gifts, of events, and of that "perfect" day. When I choose to let this be my wish and my truth and let go of the past, I find true contentment.

I will never have these experiences again. My relationships will never be exactly where they are now. The drama will be different, the peace will be different. I can choose to simply let the drama float past me if it is not my business. I can choose to embrace the peaceful moments. I can choose to not get involved, and I can choose to take care of me. I do not have to listen to demands, no matter how loud they are, if they really have nothing to do with me. I don't HAVE to buy a million Christmas presents if I don't have the money, and I can trust that everyone will KNOW how much I love them anyway. I can accept the natural flow of Christmas day, regardless of whether or not it is like "that one year." I can be content with what my God chooses to bless me with - which is EXACTLY what I need. I will simply choose to take the next indicated step each moment of the day.

Such simple changes yield strangely powerful results. I am content this year. I really am enjoying myself and this season. I know I will enjoy Christmas, no matter what chaos goes on around me. I could not have guessed just how much "letting go and letting God" would change my entire experience. I am truly blessed and grateful. How are you handling the holidays? Are you trying to make everything go your way? Or can you simply let go and believe that someone much bigger than you is totally in control of everything? Because He is. And He wants to make Christmas great for you. Merry Christmas!