Advent Week Two

Week Two (of four) of Advent has arrived and I am still struggling with gift ideas.  Part of me wants to at least send cards to all of my family/extended family/friends/those I have lost touch with/pay it forward to strangers/all that jazz... Realistically I have been able to focus on helping create a "family" gift for just immediate extended family and write Merry Christmas (or Happy Hanukkah, or Happy Kwanza, or Seasons Greetings, or Happy Holidays) on my various social media.  Sometimes emails, but I never feel like it is enough.

No matter how quickly time passes between each Advent season, I am so very thankful when December rolls around again.  Whether I have had a great year, a horrible year, or landed somewhere in-between, Christmas/December/holiday music always reminds me of family, love, support, stability, warmth... Although there are 52 weeks in every year and I always tell myself I will try to appreciate this year -- every year slips through my fingers.  And I am only thirty (already thirty!) this year...wonder what life will be like in the future!

As a Catholic, these four weeks leading up to Christmas Day every year give me the amazing opportunity to stop and be thankful for everything (good and bad) in my life.  I try to take this time to focus on something/everything that is positive/good/uplifting in people's lives because I know of/have heard of/have read/have experienced not good things.  And, being human, I often fall/sink/fail.  Advent is a time where I try to really focus outside of myself and not allow myself to get caught up in personal drama (ok, still human, I try not to focus for very long on things that are negative in my life).

I shall, of course, continue posting here hopefully for a long while... This year though I am going to invite all of you to leave me a message or send me an email (disappearingrose@yahoo.com) and I will send you a personal holiday note.  Please let me know what holiday you are celebrating, or if you would prefer the more generic Season's Greetings : )  Also I want to thank all of you, because most if not all of you have been sharing your lives with me via the online world and I really appreciate it.

Halfway through the Advent Wreath -- this week I shall be sure to pray extra for all of my social network friends!! ::HUGS::