A Holly Jolly Christmas

The older I get, and the more Christmases I experience, the more I realize that the joy I felt growing up didn't go anywhere, and it didn't disappear; it is still there, albeit in a different way. It is reborn in the next generation. I see my nieces and nephews open their gifts with wide-eyed wonder and see the gratitude expressed both in those who give and receive, and this warms my heart and soul.

Such was the case Saturday night, as the Plowmans (and Woodsens) gathered to celebrate Christmas Eve together. Steve put together a very nice Christmas program for us all. We are especially grateful that Grandma was with us to bear her testimony of Christ and His divine mission, as it looked like something not necessarily guaranteed all that long ago.

It was eight-month-old Graham's first Christmas (seen here with his 11-year-old cousin Luke):

It wasn't a pink rabbit suit, but Kylee still loved her panda pajamas:

Jackson was over the moon with his Minecraft LEGO set:

And Kira was the same about her presents:

I hope that you all enjoyed a wonderful holiday season (which, by the way, continues through January 5, the real twelfth day of Christmas). And if 2016 has been a rough year for you (it has been for me in the form of my own challenges), I hope that 2017 dawns all the brighter. I'm a big fan of new beginnings. If I can help make that happen for you, I'm here to do what I can. That, I feel, is one of the most important lessons the baby born in Bethlehem came here to teach us.

White Christmas

I don't know if it was particularly the White Christmas Bing |Crosby dreamed of or the one from his nightmares, but whatever it was, this was the scene outside this morning:

I didn't care much for all of the new snow while on my way to our one-hour church meeting (sacrament meeting only), as the roads weren't that cooperative on the way into Bountiful. But they were cleaner and better on the way home, and I'm grateful for the snowplow drivers who left the comfort of home and family on Christmas Day to clear the roads.

Looking out at the scene now as the day winds to its close, I daresay that all is calm, and all is bright.

Blessed to Give . . . and to Receive

I am not a homeless person, though I've played one at the request of an old friend.

Not long ago, one of the men who served as a high councilor over my YSA ward (and also a trusted friend) contacted me with an unusual request: Would I be willing to play a vagrant begging for money to help illustrate an important principle for the Young Men he shepherds in his present calling?

This was an unusual request. For one thing, admittedly, I am not a person you'd take a look at and say *ahem* "He's not getting enough to eat." Anyhow, I accepted and told him I would do my best. His idea was that I would dress as grubbily and as poorly as I could and that I would approach his class (they were having a lesson out of doors on this particularly cool autumn day) to ask for money or food, and this brother would then tell me to go jump in the lake without a life preserver.

It wasn't my best acting (that usually comes when I play dead bodies at improv shows, which actually happens frequently), though we executed our plan the following Sunday afternoon over, and I gave the role my best effort. After being turned away, I waited around the corner for several minutes, then I reappeared, my friend revealed my true identity, and the class discussed how they had felt or reacted when I showed up begging. My friend used the moment to teach the young men a lesson about giving and the whole "Are we not all beggars?" message of King Benjamin.

As for myself, I resolved then and there that the next time I found myself in a similar situation (being asked to give something to a destitute person), that I would help that person out and go the extra mile in doing so.

It didn't take long for an opportunity to present itself. I was getting some work done on my laptop at the local McDonald's because my home ISP (which rhymes with "Mentury Mink") had decided to go on vacation for the week. A young man came up to me to ask for something to eat. I told him that I didn't have any cash on me (which was true and is true the vast majority of the time), but that I'd be happy to buy him anything he wanted to eat with my debit card. He requested only three cheeseburgers to go, and after I paid the cashier and the order was ready, the young man thanked me and went on his way outside.

I share these experiences not to toot my own horn but instead to illustrate a point (in my usual roundabout way), and I feel that it's this: If we ask Heavenly Father for opportunities to serve, He will send people our way. We don't have to look very far (nor to be asked) to see that there are needy everywhere. We don't have to do something big to make a difference. Some of the needy are in want of a meal, like my friend at McDonald's, but others are lonely, or depressed, or ill, or their hands hang low for any number of other reasons. They are in our wards, in our neighborhoods, in line at the store, at our places of work, and even in our homes and/or families.

As I have observed friends and acquaintances share their experiences following the Church's "Light the World" campaign this month, I've witnessed many wonderful things happening. Again, these simple acts of service and the kinds words aren't grandiose, but they add up to mean a lot.

"Christmas means giving," taught President Gordon B. Hinckley. "The Father gave his Son, and the Son gave his life. Without giving there is no true Christmas."

If people don't receive that great gift, then there's no true Christmas, either. Receiving, I think, is just as important as giving. Both giving and receiving are part of a cycle that will continue to bless the giver and the receiver.

In my own, imperfect way, I've tried to give throughout this season of "Light the World." But I have also been blessed to receive a great deal from others who have been lighting the world, too. A little over a week ago, I came home feeling less than wonderful about myself, and I found that one of Santa's elves had left me a care package that included 12 gifts to be opened over the next 12 days, culminating on Christmas Day.

I hope the person who did this, whom I hope is reading this, knows what an enormously needed, timely, and appreciated gesture this has been for me. It alone has made Christmas for me this year. It has also inspired me to do the same for others as I go forward from the Christmas season that will be a thing of the past all-too soon. (Well . . . have a merry little Christmas now, as the song says.)

Who knows? I may even have chances to "Light the World" in January, or even in February. This thing could catch on. Giving and receiving are contagious.

God bless us every one, my friends. And speaking of receiving: Let Earth receive her King.

Family Dinner/December 2016

Over the weekend, we gathered as a family to celebrate our December birthdays: Mike and Kylee. (My oldest niece has one year remaining as a teenager!)

Kenna and Kate were looking cute in orange:

While Grandma enjoyed some time with 16-month-old Daniel:

And following "Pass the Parcel," Jackson taught us all how to dab:

So, it was an eventful night!

"Papá Noel in Perú"

Twenty years ago (twenty!) this week, I had one of the most memorable weeks of my mission. My companion and I saw the baptism of two sisters who (1) remain good friends of mine, (2) remain active in the Church, and (3) would bring the remainder of their family into the Church in the years that followed. Our week culminated with a stake Primary program, for which yours truly got asked to play Santa Claus (or, colloquially, "Papá Noel").

It wasn't one of my best acting roles, although it has remained one of the most memorable. I wrote an article about the experience, which was published in the Church's Liahona (international) magazine in December 2001. (As a side note, one of the other articles, published adjacent to mine, was written by the mother of one of my fellow Improvables troupe members! Incredible.)

I don't have the rights to re-print the text here, as I signed them away and whatnot, but you can read all about it by clicking on this link. And if you don't, well, I'll still be your friend.

May the Spirit and goodwill of the Christmas season be with you all.

These Shoes Were Made for Walkin'

M y 16-month-old nephew Danny is walking like a champ these days, and his skills were prominently on display recently here at the homestead.

Improvables: Christmas Party 2016

My troupe is filled with some pretty amazing people. Our gatherings are always a blast, even away from the stage, and our annual Christmas party is no exception.

One of the highlights is the white elephant gift exchange, which this year included a Steve Buscemi calendar, a Vladimir Putin calendar, an R2D2 piggy bank (which yours truly held in his hands until it was Yankee swapped, dang it), a set of custom-made Improvables dolls, and other goodies, including this gift that Parker ended up with, presented here without comment:

Jamie and Tanner ended up with the bag of goodies I wrapped up after a recent shopping spree at Dollar Tree (because that's just the kind of classy guy I am):

And it made them plenty happy, so that's good enough for me.