It’s true. I am a BIG fan of Christ’s birth. A BIG fan. Like, I’m talking blimp big. Every year I count off the the hours until Christmas eve, and then, to Christmas morn’. Every year I put up decorations, Sing Christmas carols, and maybe even write a blog post or two. But yesterday, I caught myself doing something I NEVER want to catch myself doing ever again. I actually worried about the smaller amount of presents I might possibly get. You see, We’re (my family) thinking about using the money that we’ll save from unnecessary presents to maybe sponsor a child in Africa, or do something to help someone, instead of just thinking about ourselves. If a tiny fraction of the money that people spend on Christmas was diverted to the water problem in Africa, It would be solved FOREVER. Anyway, I was seriously worried about it. Thank goodness I caught myself and reminded myself that the earth does not revolve around me. You see, That used to be how I thought constantly. That The earth revolved around me, granting my every desire. I’m trying to do revolve around the earth form now on, and cater to people more. Honestly, I really am glad that I do have the opportunity to help another human being through minute sacrifices.

So, Am I the only person who thinks this way this season?

Almost every Sunday morning for the past 13 years, I have been at Rock Church (formerly The Rock of Wilmington). I have been either on the front row or in one of the children’s ministries, having great fellowship and learning great things. I have heard amazing people speak powerful words. but every single Sunday. I sat there. I did squat. I was a subtraction to my church, not an addition. Finally I have found something I can do for my church on Sunday mornings. I am, however, still merely a student in this field, but I have recently learned how to run lights during, say, a concert. Finally, something I can give back to my church after all these years of sitting and twiddling my thumbs. I can give them the gift of light.

Tomorrow, I can put this to good use. Tomorrow, with the aid of my teacher and fellow techy Carolyn Mejia, I will run the lights for praise and worship on the fantastic Maximus, the Maxim light board owned by the church. Finally, after thirteen years as a subtraction, hopefully I can, for the first time, become an addition.

This holiday season, I have been feeling very thankful, as i said in the post below.

I wish I could say thank you to each person that I know. I know that it would be an almost impossible feat. Ihave the pleasure to know hundreds, maybe thousands, of people.

If I had the time and mental willpower, I would sit down and find at least one thing about everyone that I knew that I was thankful for.

I probably do not have the capability to do that. There is,however, one man who did.

Paul wrote letters to everyone saying what he was thankful for. He couldn’t even type it!

He had to sit there, think about every single thing, the person’s name, and then write the whole thing

out! can you imagine that? Hundreds of people he wrote to , some people with more than one thing he was thankful for.

I can’t do that, but I can do something else. I can live out my life being thankful towards everyone. I can put a smile on my face, find someone who is putting themselves second, and thank them.

That’s something I can do. Is there something you can do?

As this amazing holiday season emerses every aspect of my life this year, I see that I have nothing to gripe about. It’s true. I am supremely blessed in every way. Some times I’ll get all whiny about something, but then I’ll think, there are people all over the world dying, starving, homeless, with no one to tell them it will be okay. I’m going to use this holiday season to tell all of the things I’m thankful for. So if I walk up to you this season and say “thank you. what could I ever do without you?” I hope you’ll understand. here are ten things I am thankful for today.

1. Love. I am constantly surrounded by people who love me.
2. Food. I love that I am able to go into my pantry, pull out some type of food, and eat it. there are millions of people who can’t do that.
3. Family. How many people today can go ask their mom a question, then go to their dad and tell him a joke, then call up both sets of grandparents, then both sets of Great Grandparents, then hang out with a ton of my aunts and uncles?
4. Church. as you can see, church is a big chunk of my life.
5. Education. As much as I dislike my school, i will one day be able to grow up and get a great job, because of my education.
6. Quirks. almost everyone I know is abnormal. notice the ab. ab means better than. everyone I know is better then normal.
7. Intellect. God has placed me among groups of people so that I am never the smartest person in the room.
8. Wisdom. God has also placed me among certain figures of wisdom, my grandfather and dad, for example, that can teach me.
9. Hope. Thank you god for giving me people that are perpetually hopeful.
10. Thanksgiving. Thank you god for giving us this time of thanksgiving, where almost everyone  analyzes all of the things they are thankful for, and thank you for the people who act on that list of things.

I recently had an alarming number of epiphanies in my life, emerging from the ashes of my childhood as a young adult. One of the most prominent things that I have realized is this: I am not financially taken care of forever. Soon, I will be my own breadwinner.

Most of my life so far has consisted of a box. I lived in that box. everything that I needed was in the box, or brought to the box. My food? It’s right here, in the box. My Clothes? Oh yeah, right here, next to the college fund. Everything I need is right here, in the box.

I can’t live in this box forever. I will eventually have to provide the food, provide the clothes. I will have to be my own person. That is Kind of scary.

Imagine being taken care of for your whole life, and then that just stopped all of the sudden. That’s how I’m worried it it going to happen. I have friends who have saved THOUSANDS of dollars for college, because that is the only way they will be able to go to school. I have friends who have been studying very hard all their life for a scholarship, because that is the only way they will get into college PERIOD. It makes me kind of sad, but I know that is the way it is gonna go down. Me, actually in a job, probably having to wear a tie, just to thrive in today’s society. That is a scary thought!