This has become a new family favorite around the Davis house.
Christmas is a great time for both old and new traditions.
Life is full of transitions between the old traditions and the new.
As we seek wisdom, an important area is deciding when to let go of something and move on to something new.
Embracing the new while cherishing the old can be a delicate balance.
Christmas is a great time to embrace both.
Make it a great day.
Jake
My idea of Christmas, whether old-fashioned or modern, is very simple: loving others. Come to think of it, why do we have to wait for Christmas to do that? – Bob Hope
Idea for the day – start Christmas early.
Don’t wait another day to say thank you.
Don’t wait another day to say I love you.
Don’t wait another day to hug somebody.
Go ahead and get started. Spread some love and joy.
Make it a great day.
Jake
JW* – “The real things haven’t changed. It is still best to be honest and truthful; to make the most of what we have; to be happy with simple pleasures; and have courage when things go wrong.” — Little House on the Prairie, Laura Ingalls Wilder
EB* – “But really, they did it because every human being has a basic instinct to help each other out. It might not seem that way sometimes, but it’s true.” ―The Martian, Andy Weir
MS* – “People who have not been in Narnia sometimes think that a thing cannot be good and terrible at the same time.” — The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, C.S. Lewis
JD – “Patience, he thought. So much of this was patience – waiting, and thinking and doing things right. So much of all this, so much of all living was patience and thinking.” — Hatchet, Gary Paulsen
I forgot to collect quotes from everyone in our meeting this week so I am posting quotes from an article I recently read.
The article was about reading (and book clubs, specifically) and how it expands our thinking.
Pick up a good book. Think about what the author is really saying.
And then share those ideas with someone you care about.
Make it a great day.
Jake
“But on Christmas Eve this year, I can say to you that, at last, we may look forward into the future with real, substantial confidence that, however great the cost, peace on earth, goodwill toward men can be and will be realized and ensured,” Roosevelt said in his radio address , reaching Ladd Field via Fairbanks’s KFAR radio. “This year I can say that. Last year, I could not do more than express a hope.”“American boys are fighting today in snow-covered mountains, in malarial jungles, on blazing deserts,” he said near the end of the address. “They are fighting on the far stretches of the sea and above the clouds, and fighting for the thing for which they struggle.” – "81 Days Below Zero: The Incredible Survival Story of a World War II Pilot in Alaska’s Frozen Wilderness" by Brian Murphy
Today is Pearl Harbor Day.
It’s a day to remember an important moment in American history.
It’s also a day to remember that there are still troops fighting for us in “snow-covered mountains, in malarial jungles, on blazing deserts”.
Today, we remember those who have served and those who are serving.
Make it a great day.
Jake
"Two days in the year nothing can be done, they are yesterday and tomorrow." – Anonymous
How much of today do you spend thinking about yesterday and tomorrow?
We are all tempted to spend too much of our time focused on what we can’t control.
My personal wakeup call is to say to myself “what is the most important thing I should be doing right now?”
We each need some way to shake ourselves out of analyzing and overanalyzing the past and worrying about the future.
The difference we make and the life we build is done in 24 hour increments. Spend them wisely.
Make it a great day.
Jake
Added Christmas music to my Pandora station this week and Sir Elton implored me to “step into Christmas.”
Step into Christmas.
Do your best to get into it this year.
And not just the gifts and gift giving.
The love and joy part.
The service and caring part.
The forgive and forget part.
Make it a great day and Merry Christmas.
Jake
JW: Cast all of your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:7
JD – A little kingdom I possess, where thoughts and feelings dwell; And very hard the task I find of governing it well. – Louisa May Alcott
EB* – Christmas is the perfect time to celebrate the love of God and family and to create memories that will last forever. Jesus is God’s perfect, indescribable gift. The amazing thing is that not only are we able to receive this gift, but we are able to share it with others on Christmas and every other day of the year. – Joel Osteen
MS* – Christmas is the spirit of giving without a thought of getting. It is happiness because we see joy in people. It is forgetting self and finding time for others. It is discarding the meaningless and stressing the true values. – Thomas S. Monson
The other day was Louisa May Alcott’s birthday and so Google did their “doodle” thing and recognized the day.
After a brief fit of ADD that led me to a page with quotes from her, I found the quote above.
We are all in possession of our own little kingdom.
And most days it does seem really hard to govern.
The best advice that I have heard in the management of our little kingdoms is to submit it.
When we are running our little kingdoms solely with the purpose of serving and loving others it seems to just run better.
If you are struggling in the role of governor, maybe you can try submission.
Make it a great day.
Jake
“There is nothing in the world so irresistibly contagious as laughter and good humor.”
― Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol
Our moods and attitudes are contagious. Some moods and attitudes more so than others.
Take a quick inventory.
What moods or attitudes are others catching from you?
What moods or attitudes are you catching from those around you?
With a little bit of awareness comes the best part – the ability to choose moving forward.
If there is nothing in the world so irresistibly contagious as laughter and good humor, that might be a good place to start.
Make it a great day.
Jake
With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts. – Eleanor Roosevelt
This quote reminded me of playing video games when I was younger. The moment when you are “reset” and you are given new life (or lives) to start over with.
It’s the moment when the past failures are moved on from and you begin again anew.
It’s a new day. You have been given 24 more hours to work with. Let’s get started.
Make it a great day.
Jake
Just as a candle cannot burn without fire, men cannot live without a spiritual life. – Buddha
Our lives are full.
Our days fill quickly.
24 hours passes each day whether we like it or not.
Too often our spiritual lives are one of the areas neglected.
Living a fulfilled and happy life requires cultivating our spiritual side.
Finding quiet time for prayer and reflection are important and must not be neglected.
Christmas time is a great time to create some quiet space to be thoughtful and reflective.
Make it a great day and Merry Christmas.
Jake
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