Christmas Eve

My family, like most in America, is a conglomeration of many different cultures.  We try to incorporate many of them into our own holiday traditions.  My mother is half Irish, half Norwegian, and my father was half Danish, half English.  So we have a lot of different customs we enjoy.

One that we always celebrated was on Christmas Eve.  My mother, through her Norwegian lineage, held a belief that the Christ Child walks again on Christmas Eve looking for a place to stay.  Of course, you won't recognize him as the Christ ... he could be your neighbor, a friend from church or school, or a stranger whose car has broken down in front of your house. 

My mother always had the house cleaned with cookies and cocoa at the ready.  And, this was most important, a light needed to be shining to lead the way to your doorstep.

I still believe in that tradition.  My house is always ready on Christmas Eve to take in whomever knocks at my door.  And by ready I don't mean a cleaned and sparkling house so much as that our hearts are ready to receive the friendship and love that may come calling, and our hands ready to serve those who need it.

"God does notice us, and he watches over us.  But it is usually through another person that he meets our needs.  Therefore, it is vital that we serve each other in the kingdom."  Spencer W. Kimball, 1895-1995