Hello All, ( posted this in Members Only Area but felt the message goes beyond that area, forgive me if it offends anyone )
I was sitting in my office today pondering what Christmas or as others may simply call the holiday season and i was kinda reflecting on what it means to me and felt it was about that time for my yearly personal chat.
The other while sitting in church I found myself asking myself…what am I here for and what have I done for others, and more directly what can I do to make dreams come true for others.
And while I am thinking this It takes me to what I am doing for a young boy named Henry in my area.
You see…Henry is 9 years old and had nothing, hardly any clothes and no toys and well he has to endure hardship on a daily basis while I sleep in my warm bed and eat my good meals…but what about poor henry i ask myself.
You know Henry never asks for much, his parents are struggling to provide things for this child and while henry I am sure is like any other child he would love to have things he see’s other kids having…but Henry does not ask for much, Henry does not cry about his situation…Henry just goes on with his daily life not expecting much and praying for more.
Now, I don’t know Henry. You see Henry is a child in my area that is part of the Salvation Armys gift program where they put names on a local tree and you pick it off and give a gift to a child…so we happen to pick Henry from this tree…why Henry…Why Me…why now.
Well little henry who is 9 years old wears a size 2 shoe, so we know little henry is quite little BUT little henry did not ask for anything really, in fact he only had one thing listed on his card…his DREAM was to own a bike…
Now I reflected on this, I reflected on my own life and my own childs life. My son has everything a child could want, multiple bikes, video games and probably every toy known to exist ( well probably not all ) because I love my child and I want him to be happy…BUT what I found is what is the real purpose of the holidays…and this HIT me in church…
The Holidays are INDEED about receiving.
Now I know someone will say Paul what do you mean, it is about giving and before you think on that let me explain…
The thought of giving HENRY his dream…if even for a DAY gave me such a rush of emotions I could not explain, The thought of seeing this childs eyes light up on Christmas day, the thought of his parents enjoying the warmth of his excitement if only for a DAY made me understand the TRUE meaning of Christmas and the Holidays…it is indeed receiving…receiving the warmth and joy of making others dreams come true, seeing them forget all their worries if only for a day…
I can’t express the feelings in words…I raced off to get more names because the feeling became intoxicating…just the thought of those children who do not ask for much, having their dreams come true if only for a day.
Yes, I bought Henry that BIKE…and it was a glorious Bike. Henry will not know me, he will not know how I care about a child I have never seen but the GIFT henry and his family gave me means more than any GIFT I could ever receive…the GIFT of seeing others enjoy life if only for a day.
Bless you all…Give to others…Show the world you care and enjoy what you receive in warmth from those you give to.
Happy Holidays…