Christmas Spirit

Is Christmas really the most wonderful time of the year?  For many, December 25 brings much added stress financially, mentally, and even emotionally.  Creating the "perfect Christmas" on earth is not realistic, in my opinion, when there are families around the world starving and homeless.  My Christmas experiences have all differed and evolved for myself though.  When I was younger I mainly focused on receiving big expensive gifts, as this determined whether my Christmas was good or not.  Yes.. I was a brat around the holidays.  As I continued to mature I began to understand how lucky I was to have a loving family, a roof over my head, and food on the table as the gifts grew less and less important to me.  I enjoy spending time with my crazy Italian family and not celebrating the material matters on Christmas.  This coming Christmas I plan to donate any gifts I would have received and give them to people who will appreciate them more than me.  My goal for doing so is to help create a "perfect Christmas" for someone less fortunate because nobody should feel stressed around the holidays.  Christmas should be a time to rejoice and reflect on the importance of family's togetherness.  For myself, if I am surrounded by people who love me and who I love, Christmas is undeniably special.