It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

Ok, so that title of this post isn't exactly true. It's still 80 degrees here, and I went to the pool on Saturday and got a nice tan. But I am starting to get into the Christmas spirit. I've listened to some Christmas music, even though it just doesn't feel the same when the leaves are still on the trees outside, I sweat everytime I walk to school, and there is no sign of snow. We listened to "Walking in a Winter Wonderland" while we were making pies for Thanksgiving, and it just seemed a little odd. I got super excited yesterday when I found some Christmas lights on display in a store, until Desarae pointed out that they weren't regular bulbs but instead they were little colored flowers. Bummer. But regardless of all the differences, I'm getting more and more excited about celebrating Christmas, Uganda style, this year.

My time in Uganda has changed my perspective on most things and Christmas is no different. Growing up the most exciting part of Christmas was Santa and the presents that he would bring. I remember not being able to sleep the night before because I couldn't wait to see what new things I was going to get the next day. The older I got, and as I went off to college, Christmas became important because of the people I would be with rather than the gifts I would receive. I always looked forward to a break from school, and time with all of my family, as Christmas is one of the few times in the year that all of my brothers and sisters are together.

Now I find myself in a culture where people barely have enough money to survive, let alone shower their loved ones with gifts at this time of year. I'm also going to be away from the majority of the people I love, but I'm so blessed to be looking forward to the arrival of Mom and Dave on Christmas Eve. Talk about an awesome Christmas present! Christmas will definitely be different this year, but I am rejoicing in those differences. Instead of making my own wish list this year, I'm having a blast dreaming with Desarae about all the gifts we could give our friends here. Many of these people have never been given a gift in their life, or very few, and I'm excited about the opportunity to love them in this way. Instead of mourning that more of my family won't be here, I'm thankful for those that are coming, and I'm enjoying making my own Christmas traditions with my new family here.

Today we got to experience the pleasure of giving a small gift to some of our dear friends here. It was our last Bible study at Bishop Stuart University before all of the students go home for the break. So we decided to whip up a few surprises for the ladies, including a few loaves of banana bread that we took and shared with them. The best part of the day was that we had our friend and language teacher Doreen translate an entire paragraph into runyonkole so we could thank them for their love and friendship in their local language. I videoed their reaction and I wish you could all see it. They were clapping, cheering, and laughing of course at our awful attempts to pronounce the words correctly, but their faces were so full of joy. They loved that we had taken the time to learn that, and I think it was the greatest gift we could have given them.

This Christmas I'm choosing to focus on the many good gifts in my life that God has blessed me with instead of grieving that Christmas won't be the same as I'm used to. This Christmas instead of wondering what gifts I'll get, I'm choosing to wonder how many gifts I can give to my friends here to bless their holiday. This Christmas I'm going to watch "Elf" with some of my new friends here, so that I can share the joy that Will Ferrell brings to all, rather than wishing I was back at Harding watching it in my dorm room with my best friends. This Christmas I'm thanking God for the family that I miss in America and the family that I'm growing to love and dreading leaving here in Uganda. This Christmas I'm just so thankful for the life God has given me, and the ways he continues to be merciful and gracious to his daughter.