I Witnessed The True Spirit of Christmas

When we were young kids, we loved watching "The Gift of Love" (even though it was in black and white)...and even as a kid, I cried every time. A short summary below (it definitely deseres a spoiler alert!):

On Christmas Eve, with only $1.87 in hand, and desperate to find a gift for Jim, Della sells her hair for $20 to a nearby hairdresser named Madame Sofronie, and eventually finds a platinum pocket watch fob chain for Jim's watch for $21. Satisfied with the perfect gift for Jim, Della runs home and begins to prepare pork chops for dinner.

At 7 o'clock, Della sits at a table near the door, waiting for Jim to come home. Unusually late, Jim walks in and immediately stops short at the sight of Della, who had previously prayed that she was still pretty to Jim. Della then admits to Jim that she sold her hair to buy him his present. Jim gives Della her present – an assortment of expensive hair accessories (referred to as “The Combs”), useless now that her hair is short. Della then shows Jim the chain she bought for him, to which Jim says he sold his watch to get the money to buy her combs. Although Jim and Della are now left with gifts that neither one can use, they realize how far they are willing to go to show their love for each other, and how priceless their love really is.

I loved this movie and thought "someday when I'm married I want to have that kind of selfless love."

Today I witnessed that kind of selfless love -- the true spirit of Christmas. A couple who is dear to me decided that rather than give each other gifts, they would give a very meaningful gift to someone in need. This gift would change someone's life for the better by helping her function better in life and by giving her confidence. As we went to deliver the news to this dear woman, I choked back tears. I knew I was witnessing a Christmas miracle.

I realized the principle behind the giving spirit. The beauty isn't how much we have to give (think of the widow's mite), but in the change that occurs in our hearts. When we have a giving heart, we are promised by the Lord: "I will open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it" (Malachi 3:10). So it is with us; when we sacrifice in small ways for others, cultivating this soft heart, the Lord answers us with the blessings of eternity -- we are given "all that the Father hath."

As we give freely of our time, talents, and substance, we are blessed with a giving heart. Today I heard the story of Elder Eyering's father, (also named Henry), who spent the day weeding at the Bishop's storehouse farm. His health was poor, so he could only pull himself along by his forearms all the way down the row. At the end of the day, someone noticed which row he had weeded and said "Hal, those weeds were sprayed yesterday. They would have died anyway." He just laughed and said "good thing I wasn't in it for the weeds." We each serve in the church for a purpose, and it's not about cooking funeral potatoes and ham; it's about our growth.

Today women came together to prepare for our ward Christmas party. Many of them were there from noon until 8pm when I left. As we worked, taping butcher paper to tables for an hour or stirring 40 lbs of hashbrowns, I thought to myself, "I'm not in it for the weeds (potatoes etc.)" Sure enough, I made a new friend today.

The beauty of repetitive work is that you can talk and think while you work. I realized that we each have aptitides; ways we naturally prefer to contribute. Some have executive ability to plan a large function and make it run smoothly, others would rather be behind the scenes, and some enjoy being in the spotlight. One had a special love of tending children. She wanted to hold my baby and was so happy to take the kids into the nursery and tend them. This was a beautiful gift of service because it enabled us to stir big pots of funeral potatoes and cut ham. Since we each have aptitudes and talents, let's use those this year to create the spirit of Christmas in our lives -- the spirit of giving.