Anybody that has followed me on Facebook is aware we had a challenging Christmas this year. It began actually a couple of days before Christmas when we found the entire family at the doctors being swabbed and informed we had influenza. With the fever, aches, cough, and stomach pains we really didn’t need this confirmation but I guess we now knew in fact it was the “real” Flu. This lead to the next few days of bed rest, lots of tissues, and confinement with in our house (and a Christmas we wish we could forget).
So what happens when the Christmas we know and trust may not occur? I can tell you it wasn’t the government or a man in a red suit that came through for us. The people that came over without asking or expectations were our friends and neighbors. It was these people that were not only there for us but were there out of love not obligation. We had two different families one the day before and the other the day after Christmas bringing us soup, tissues, orange juice, meals, medicine, and other necessities. There was even a small gift for our little girl with a note saying “don’t worry Santa had his flu shot and will still visit you tonight.”
I cannot tell you what this meant to us and how special these families were to us. When we needed something they helped and together even though they only dropped off provisions, we shared Christmas. It is these relationships that are most important and these tribes that we need to get back to. It would seem that while this may have been a selfless act and small example I am confident if anything else would ever happen they would be there for us, (and us for them).
As mentioned although a small example it seems every time systems break down, those larger organizations you rely on begin to fail, or establishments no longer serve you - things come back to the same thing. As systems fail things always appear to go back to the lowest common denominator – family, friends, and neighbors. It is family, friends, and neighbors that rally and come together. It is those closest to you and you truly trust that you believe in when all you believed prior is exposed.
Unfortunately we can see the strains on the current system and the cracks in the establishment. But many are still looking for the man in the red suit or Obama-Clause to come save them. I have a news flash for you and them – a party, a politician, and status quo is not going to fix the problems we face today. We need to get back, rely on, and strengthen family, friends, and neighborhoods.
By no means can I compare our Christmas experience to what is going on in our nation but I am all about analogies and parallels. I can say that we survived Christmas with the flu and could not have done it without those people close to us. People who delivered food on our doorstep and showed something that an organization or institution could never show – Love.
