It's All Over

I've gotta say, I'm always a little disappointed when Christmas is over. The stores go back to normal and the stress is over until I get my credit card bill. But "the holidays" and all the negativity that comes with them never really bothered me. I love shopping for other people and decorating and wrapping and baking.

The week after Christmas is really say for me. My house always looks so bare after the tree comes down. Work is a happier place when there are snowflakes hanging from the ceiling.

The thing that I hate most about the after-Christmas season is that people get mean again. For a short time during the holidays people remember what it means to love others. People are generous and kind. Someone in line a head of you pays for your coffee. You actually give your change to the guy standing outside Target. We adopt needy families, soldiers, and dogs from shelters. We shovel our neighbor's snow and tell everyone we encounter to have a Merry Christmas.

As soon as it's over it's as if we forget that we're all still the same people we were last week. We go back to our routines and get caught up in ourselves. The man outside Target is still hungry and the family you adopted still needs help.

So here's my challenge to you. Keep it going. Let the person with less items at the register go ahead of you. Smile and mean it when you say "have a nice day" to EVERYONE. Send a random gift to someone who could use a pick-me-up. Get a Starbucks card for Christmas? Buy that person behind you their coffee. Do it all year. Christmas is over but kindness doesn't have to be.