Kindness

It has been a couple of weeks since my last post. Amos is adjusting his schedule so my normal writing time is no more. However, Jonathan is on break for a couple of weeks so hopefully I can be more consistent in writing.

There are a lot of things I want to talk about. But they are not related and would make for a very lengthy post, so I will just address them one at a time for now. But first!

Amos is now 3 months old and doing great! He has a doctor’s appointment today and I am anxious to see how much he has grown! His personality is showing now and we really enjoy seeing it.

Now, unto the actual post.

This time of year really seems to bring out the ugly in people. The few days leading up to, and including Christmas, my facebook newsfeed was full of “Merry Christmas!”, Happy Hanukkah!”, “Happy Holidays!” and ugly responses to these greetings. Now, don’t get me wrong; Jonathan and I do not celebrate Christmas, (I celebrate Hanukkah), but we/I am in no way offended if you celebrate Christmas and wish me a Merry Christmas. I will wish you a Happy Hanukkah in return. In fact, Christmas is such a big deal here, that I have said “Feliz Navidad” several times. I think it’s more offensive to refuse to acknowledge an important holiday than to just wish them a good one. Let me explain….

If you don’t celebrate Hanukkah for _____ reasons, that’s fine! It’s your religious right/freedom to do so. However, if you go to someone’s house for dinner and they are celebrating it, and they wish you a happy Hanukkah or a merry Christmas, would it not be rude to not exchange the wish? Ultimately, isn’t it the main point of Scripture to live in unity and love your neighbor as yourself? If you want someone to respect your holiday, shouldn’t you respect theirs? You don’t have to agree with it, but you can still be respectful and loving. There is no need to get all up in arms over this that and the other, just smile and return a greeting. If you feel like X person needs to be told about _____ reason to not (or to) celebrate ____ holiday, trust that the opportunity to share that information will arise. No need to be holier-than-thou and refute/attack a friendly greeting. You catch more flies with honey than vinegar.

All I am trying to say is, it’s an important time of year for many people, and also stressful for many. Instead of giving them something else to be stressed about or offended by, be the calm face that gives a few moments of peace. No need to be ugly.

That is all I have time for now. Gotta go back to being a Mom. Until next time, may Adonai bless and keep you.