The tree is up, I was think of the many Christmas' we have had and the places we have had them. I have one memory that is the most vivid of all of them it is not of the best gift I have received but of a time and a place where I thought I would never have Christmas feelings cause of the weather and lack of the normal commercialism. (this is truly an American thing to be full of Santa before Thanksgiving and even before Halloween)
We were stationed at the embassy in Cairo Egypt, Our first Christmas there I was kinda bummed about the weather and the Christmas shopping--no mall shopping or Christmas sales.
I could only think of the not having and what I was missing cause I was not in the states with the great malls, the boys would have a bad Christmas cause I could not buy anything cool for them. How shallow my attitude was at that moment.
There were many parties that we were invited to and the best taught me the greatest lesson. We were invited to a progressive dinner party, it was six stops in six different homes, with the last being dessert, music, dancing and good conversations and laughing with friends. We were on a Lux bus traveling thur Cairo and Maddi (suburb of Cairo) as we drove thur the city soft Christmas music played and I was watching out the window, looking at the things we were passing. I saw a woman and a man with their donkey. This is not out of the ordinary for Egypt...a every day thing. At this moment I was hit by my whining for the commercial things of Christmas. I was in the place where Christ had been,where his family had been. I cried and realized that there is so much more to Christmas than buying the world for those we love. I saw the places that Christ had been and if you ask an Egyptian they will tell you every place He had been this said with the "oh yeah they stayed here" reply like it is something everyday. I felt so selfish, and greedy. There are people still living in mud hut with dirt floors, wearing the the same style of clothing that they wore when Christ was on Earth. I was truly humbled at that moment. I will always remember the bus ride thru Maddi, our friends and the lesson I learned, stop and remember the reason for and the sacrifice that was made for us, that it is the greatest gift we will ever receive.