For the last year and a half, I have felt completely inadequate when it came to getting gifts for Tim. He would always one-up me! I got him a clock for his birthday, he got me a smartphone. I got him slippers for Christmas, he got me a laptop. It's been that way since the beginning, and I would always tell him that I felt like I didn't get him enough, though he would respond with "your love is the most important gift!"
Men are hard to shop for as it is, but when I ask Tim what he wants for Christmas or birthdays, he always tells me he has everything he wants! I've come to realize that all he wants, is for me to give him my time. Try new things with him, play games, go out on dates, etc. I'm only now realizing that material gifts don't matter to him as much as experiences and relationships. He cares more about building our relationship, and building memories, than he does about any gadget or game. Now there's the true meaning of Christmas!
This year, instead of making a list, and instead of getting each other gifts, we got one gift to share between us. It could have been a new TV, or it could have been a bag of popcorn. Either way, it is a gift that we will enjoy together. It goes beyond that material value of the object, it's so much more than just a present. We are finally on equal ground, and we get to experience that together.
I'm so glad Tim has been an example to me of what it means to give. It truly is the thought that counts. There is so much more to Christmas than presents. Its about spending time together, and remembering what we are truly celebrating. We celebrate the birth of a man who literally gave his life for us, and atoned for our sins so that we don't have to. Christ didn't get us a new smartphone, or a new laptop, he gave us a divine example to follow, and he gave us an opportunity to return to our Heavenly Father. Knowing I am loved, and that people really enjoy spending time with me is such a powerful gift.
Give the gift of time this season. Show people you love them, make memories together, enjoy each others company. This is not the season to get together with family out of obligation. It is the season to get together with family because you love them. It is the season to put aside all of the problems you might have, and forgive. It is the season to give second chances, and to love one another the way that God loves us.
Merry Christmas!
