Sunday, January 5, 2014

Bringing back the Holiday Spirit with a Bag of Ice.

Christmas is stressful. It's become about expensive gifts and bigger and better Christmas lights. I'm not big on Christmas decorations. I don't put up a tree, I put up minimal decorations, and Brad and I don't give each other gifts. This is my way of avoiding Christmas stress. This is my way of trying to preserve the Holiday spirit. What good is a bunch of decorations if it causes stress? What good is shopping for the perfect gift, if the gift isn't even appreciated? Where has the Holiday spirit gone?

I try not to push my minimalist Holiday view on others, but inevitably I'm reminded every year that the holiday season has become less about loving people, family time, and baby Jesus, and more about gifts, decorations and elves on the shelves.

But this year I saw a glimpse of the Holiday Spirit and it made my heart smile. We threw our annual Lights in the Heights party. This is the reason I put up any decorations at all. And every year the corner store runs out of ice really early in the day. What can you expect when 40,000 Houstonians are visiting the Heights? Brad walked to the corner store, just after a guy had bought the rest of the ice. So Brad walked back to house without ice. These things happen, right? As Brad was walking back to the house, the guy that bought all of the ice drove by and gave Brad some ice. Small, insignificant, gesture? Possibly. But on the biggest Heights event night of the year, it meant something. In the midst of hosting and party planning, this guy remembered to spread the holiday spirit. He remembered Christmastime is about giving. So here's to you, random Heights guy - Thank you for spreading Holiday cheer and reminding me that the Holiday spirit is still alive and well. You just have to be open to it.

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