A Season for Giving

by Camille Gleason

There are many things to be remembered, and lessons to be learned during the Christmas Holidays. Some of the lessons come in ways we never expected.

Last year at this time I was living away from home. I lived in one of the nation's biggest cities by myself and didn't have many friends. I was dreading the Christmas holidays because I knew I would be alone and there was no way I could afford to make the cross country trip home. I worked downtown in one of the nation's most busy and secured buildings. Every morning I got on the Metro and had a 45-minute ride into the city. At night I would get on the Metro again and have another long journey home.

This routine happened day after day after day. I was thankful to be in the nation's capital, and counted my blessings daily for the opportunity I had to be out amongst the leaders of the country. But I couldn't help but feel extreme loneliness as the holidays came, and I couldn't get the Christmas spirit to set in my heart. It just didn't seem like the same holiday without Mom's sweetbread and pies, Dad reading the Christmas story, and my sisters gathered together laughing in one bedroom on Christmas Eve. I longed for the comforts of the snowy mountain valley, and the sound of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir playing over the loud speakers in the various stores in town. This Christmas would be different and there was not much I could do about it. Or, so I thought.

As I got off the Metro every morning, and walked the five minutes to my office, I passed people who had made their home on benches outside. They never asked for anything from those who passed them so quickly. Often I saw them drinking a cup of hot coffee or hot chocolate, but that probably kept them warm for just a few brief moments. I wondered how they were surviving the cold air. It seemed to break through every one of my bones each time the wind blew, and I had on a warm coat and ear muffs. I saw these friends of mine every day and would make what I thought was my contribution, a simple smile when we made eye contact.

The Christmas season was fast upon me and there was still no feeling of it in my heart. I heard the Christmas songs, the mall parking lots were always full, an occasional snow fell to the ground, and there were Christmas specials on TV every night. But still I felt something was missing. I couldn't put my finger on it. I remember one night feeling lonely and cold and almost lost, and then in my mind a vision of my friends on the benches outside my office came into clear view. As I caught hold upon that thought, I realized that with the help of Heavenly Father, I didn't have to feel alone anymore; nor did I need to feel sorry for myself. Something hit me that night and changed my whole attitude for the season.

I went right to the kitchen and started baking. The smell of banana bread and my mom's sweetbread filled the air. If I couldn't have it homemade from her kitchen, I would have it from mine.

The next morning as I walked by my friends on the street, I passed out loaves of banana bread, hot out of the oven. It may have warmed them a little bit, but I was on fire inside. I found myself smiling all the way up the elevator to the 8th floor. I hummed Christmas songs all day. That night when I left my office, I saw another man who had made his home across the street. I had noticed him before and saw the smile he always gave those who passed him by. He was like my other friends, never asking for anything. Seeing him warmed my heart and I felt a desire to heed the call of the Savior. The thought of the Babe in Bethlehem filled my heart and my mind and I knew that there was more that I could do than just deliver banana bread. "When saw we thee a stranger . . . " sounded in my ears. I thought of the Savior as I looked at this man and knew that at one time the Savior felt his cold, his hunger, and his pain.

The next day on my lunch break, I went to this man and delivered a bag full of Christmas treasures. A new blanket, gloves, and ear muffs to protect him from the cold air. Warm bread to feed him physically, and a copy of the Book of Mormon to feed him spiritually. There were other things in that bag, which now I don't remember. I can imagine that they kept him warm that winter, but what I received by giving those gifts to him, will keep me warm for a lifetime.

Christmas is a season of so many things. I always thought of it as a time to spend with my family eating Mom's pies, laughing with my sisters, and listening to my Dad read to me. Although I still longed for those times, I came to realize that Christmas is so much more. It is a season for giving and reaching out to those who may feel lost or forgotten. It is a season to forget yourself, and do as the Savior – that Babe born in Bethlehem -- would do. It is a season to remember Him and remember His great message, "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." I won't ever view Christmas quite like I used to. I am not in that city, or amongst those friends anymore, but I won't ever forget the lesson I learned from their kind smiles and Christlike faces.