To Give, and Receive, Service

 

One of the things we strive to do every year is help our little Muggles find ways to serve others during the Holidays. We try to do this in various ways--serving others, providing food or clothing to people in need, and visiting people. Our hope is that they will understand that we are blessed and when we have something to give or to help others, we can make the world a better. 

We were able to make breakfast for some of the staff at my work on Christmas. We knew they were going to be away from their families on Christmas morning, so we woke up at 0500h and opened  our gifts to be done before 0700h when we wanted to be there at work to make pancakes for them. 

I loved being there and serving as a family. We loved walking around and watching all of them work! We were able to see them feed the frogs, water the plants, feed the sloths, and spent some time watching the sharks. It was a special day. 

We also chose several elderly people we know we wanted to deliver gifts to. Each visit them was an inspiring experience. We went to give them gifts and bring our love, but instead we left with their love and kindness. Each stop we laughed, we talked, we learned about the goodness in the world, and we left full of Christmas joy. We are so thankful for these people in our lives. 

After one visit to one of my former bosses, we were especially touched. He has not being doing well the last few years health-wise. We nearly lost him a few times this last year. We wanted to drop something off to he and his wife. We ended up staying there for several hours. They shared their love for us, their love for their family and most of all, their love for the Savior. We were so blessed to be near them. (they were even gracious when Koala Bear accidentally knocked a photo off the wall and it fell down the stairs and exploded--embarrassed parent moment for sure). 

As we left we talked about how much that boss has become a good friend and mentor. I love to sit down with him and hear his wisdom. It was even better to spend more quality time with his wife. Lady Hiva was SO excited to get some of her recipes that we have enjoyed over the years. As we drove back to our hotel we both remembered one Christmas several years ago when money was REALLY tight for us. There were several unavoidable things that happened all at once right before Christmas and we were unsure how we were going to make it all work. We had bills to pay...we had medical stuff to cover...and that was not even mentioning Christmas. We decided to pay our tithing and have faith it would work out somehow (we believe that all that we have is a blessing from Heavenly Father, so we give back 10% of what we make to the Church. It could be seen as a sacrifice, but we have learned we are ALWAYS blessed far more than what we would have given). 

I have to admit that paying tithing that year was hard. I knew in doing it, we may not have enough to buy gifts for our kids. But the next day at work this same boss we had visited this year had called me into his office and told me that he had some gift certificates and wanted to give them to me. I teared up as I told him how much it meant to me. I am not sure he realized HOW much it meant. These cards added up to a large amount of money and we were able to cover all our bills and buy a few gifts. Lady Hiva and I will forever be grateful for people like he and his wife in our lives who show us what it means to serve others. 

The service given to us this year continued throughout the season. We had friends and family drop of gifts at the hotel for us. They went out of their way to help us feel loved. We had families invite us for dinner, to go bowling, and to come over and spend time together. We had neighbors, who are as close as family, let us use their garage for storage until we can move, give us gifts we will cherish for years to come, and love us even with all our quirks. We have showed up at some of their houses late at night and sat and laughed for hours. Texts, cards, and phone calls come nearly everyday to wish us luck as we leave. We know this is a REALLY busy time of year for all of them, so we are thankful they took time to spend with us. 

Lady Hiva had some friends schedule a surprise dinner with her. (I had to tell her eventually because she does NOT do well with surprises). When she came back from that dinner she was so happy. She said they laughed and laughed the whole time. Another group of people from our congregation surprised us with dinner together. Again, we were surrounded by people we look up to and admire. At one point the server came in and said, "it is so good to see that your family still loves each other. Some of these families come in and seem hostile towards each other. I love seeing that your family has not lost that!" I loved that she knew although we were not blood relatives, we have grown together over the years. 

These are people, like my former boss, that we can reach out to when we need help, love fiercely, and have changed our lives for good. 

As we transition into our next adventure, we know we are not saying goodbye to these great people. They are permanently part of our lives (whether they like it or not)! Our hearts are full. We have served. We have had service given to us. Life is good. (this is why I LOVE Christmas!) 

An Unconventional Take On A Traditional Christmas

Between selling our house, a trip to Hawaii, a trip to California, and a trip to Washington State, we have had an unconventional Christmas! It was the first Christmas that Koala Bear has ever had not in our Eagle Mountain home. 

We moved out of our home a few weeks before Christmas because we were told we were going to close earlier, but then it ended up that we closed a week later (BRRMMP...totally a long story that made me really irritated...so we will avoid that for this happy post). So we were hanging out in a hotel. 

We have learned all about the staff and clearly are regulars throughout the week! HAHA. Our room is PACKED with stuff--and that includes 2 Christmas trees and 4 other small 2foot trees spread around the room. The main trees were a white fiber glass tree and a rainbow tree. The kids loved that they got to decorate. Lucky Dragon took it upon himself to string the room with lights. Lady Hiva and I were loving his creativity. 

Koala Bear learned to play "Jeep Punch" from her cousins in Hawaii. The idea of the game is if you see a Jeep you punch someone near you. She decided that since we have a room facing a freeway she was going to watch out the window for Jeeps so she can punch people HAHAHA. 

Keeping some traditions alive, we went to the #LighttheWorld Giving Machines. Every year we let the kids choose what they want to give to others. It is part of our effort to help them learn Christmas is about giving and service, not getting and selfishness. It is fun to see them want to help others. They make it very serious as they decide and often can remember what they gave the last several years. Our conversation usually ends up with us all trying to imagine the family that "received our chickens last year" or if "we think the family that received our goat ate the goat or kept it for milk." 

Proving how COVID-19 has changed our lives, this year Lucky Dragon did not choose an animal like he normally would and opted for vaccines for children. (Proud parent moment). Koala Bear chose a goat this year. 

We had fun shopping for each other. The last few years we have done something that we each get 3 gifts--one from the other three members of the family. It makes it simple and thoughtful. It also helps us focus on loving others instead of worrying about what we are going to receive. 

Wrapping gifts was an adventure of its own this year. Kind of hard to wrap gifts when you are all staying in a hotel room. There is no place to go and hide while you wrap. So we had to strategically plan when to wrap when people were showering! HAHA. 

Both kids had their Christmas sings. Because of snow days, it ended up that Lucky Dragon was able to see Koala Bear and visa-versa. I loved seeing the two of them in their element with their friends and teachers. 

Throughout the last week we have found ways to be with family. We had dinner with cousins, bowled with a whole bunch of family, built Ginger Bread Houses, played games, exchanged gifts, and laughed. It has been a busy season, but I am thankful we have people in our lives willing to let us enjoy time with them. 

 

  

We went down and did the Festival of Lights in Spanish Fork again this year. This is something we have done every years since we arrived in Utah. I am glad that we have been able to keep some of the traditions alive even if it is different than what we usually do during Christmas. 

So, yes, this year was a bit different than other years, but we were still able to do things that we love. We spent time with people we care about and gave gifts to bring joy!