decorating contest.
or soap opera, but they are a gift to you from God.
Embrace them as best you can.
expecting the elephant in the living room to move out
for a few days. Instead, the behavior of difficult relatives
doesn't improve or it gets worse. Aunt Maude's criticism
stings, Uncle Jake gets drunk and belligerent and cousin
Annie bullies the other little kids. Surprised?
Not really, because their behavior is nothing new.
It's not likely to change just because it's Christmas.
So take a deep breath and move on.
in a Chinese restaurant.
circumstances may keep you far from family this year.
However, you can't change it, so look for a way to
connect with someone where you are.
will get cranky. The phone will ring. Hold on to those
you love and get through it.
mas to rest. Christmas doesn't need to be a holiday de-
fined by a child's fantasy or unrealistic expectations.
But it can be a holy day celebration that takes seriously
the gospel's call of redeeming love that comes to us as
the babe in Bethlehem. When we express that redeem-
ing love to each other in the midst of the imperfection
of life, we truly celebrate Christmas--perfect or not.